Father and Daughter
by DWShadow3145
Summary: Hogwarts AU in which Arthur doesn't stand by while a young boy is being sent away to neglect and misery after saving his daughter's life. First person POV of Arthur and Ginny, starting at the end of the Chamber. Eventually covering all remaining five years. Eventual G/H.
1. Year 3, Part 1

Author's note:

This is a repost. Most of the story is essentially the same but I had issues where it was headed and it took me awhile to have a satisfactory fix. I won't be deleting this one, I promise.

 ***Arthur***

Another day, another galleon. I went over to get a fresh cup of coffee so I'd stay awake while tackling the stack of pages before me. Five inches of parchment of appeals, reports, and general busy work. Five inches stacked vertically.

I didn't really hate my job, in fact I loved it. I just hated being stuck in the office for this many days in a row. When I was sent out to investigate a report of illegal muggle artifact reuse or when there was a legal item that was acting wonky, I was happy. In the office, I'm stuck in this room with one other wizard and there's more than a handful of ministry employees that won't look me in the eye.

Dealing with Muggle items is not a proper job for the head of one of the pure-blood families. But we aren't a proper pure-blood family, either. And of that fact I am very proud.

My lovely, gracious, kind wife. She has so much talent but no one knew it because she had spent the last twenty-odd years raising our children. Now, it was just the two of us again and we had been spending every minute possible getting reacquainted.

I was also proud of our seven wonderful children.

My oldest working for Goblins.

My second oldest serving dragons.

My next son… well, there's always one in the family.

The twins…. After their second year, I plum gave up on writing Howlers. They seemed to know where the line was and seemed to have an eternal competition of figuring out how close they could come to it without being in serious trouble. But with everything they did, they did bring a lot of happiness to many of us.

My youngest son. Always striving, loyal to the family but it's hard to stand out when you have five brothers that have already done everything. Until he met a friend that had to confront You-Know-Who at his first birthday and then at his first year at school. That had been right terrifying when I heard about it after the fact, but nothing compared to what was going on this year. I was ashamed to admit I was relieved that with our blood status I wasn't worrying about them, at least about that. I had always trusted Dumbledore's judgment and while cracks were appearing, I still believed he'd take care of it, even if he was suspended.

Then there was my youngest, my only daughter… the only daughter my family had known in generations. The one who I freely admitted had had me wrapped around her little finger since her fingers could barely wrap around mine. She had been quite… odd over the summer, which I was concerned with, until Molly told me that it had been our houseguest that she had been harboring quite a crush for her age. She had started off the school year quite excited, sending letters to us weekly, but that had tapered off quite a bit by Hallowe'en. I had promised myself to spend extra time with her this summer, hopefully figure out what was wrong.

Then all my plans were scattered to the winds. My door flung open and the last person I expected to see was there. "Minerva!"

She nodded and slowly walked in. Her face looked traumatized. "Merlin, what did the twins do…" She had never needed to come see me personally, especially in the middle of the day.

"Arthur, it wasn't one of your boys…" It took a second to realize what she meant. "There was an incident with Ginny," she said as she closed the door. "Somehow, she got ahold of a diary enchanted by Voldemort, and he has been using it to force her to open the Chamber." She paused as I tried to process what she said.

"How is she?" I could barely let out a whisper.

"She's physical fine, and it's all over now, but you need to come. Poppy is getting Molly."

I nodded and we quickly found the nearest floo, which took us directly to the headmaster's room. Thankfully, Dumbledore had already been reinstated. He was seated at his desk and in front of him was my daughter with my Molly, and as I should have guessed, Harry Potter.

Ginny was terrified and holding back tears. Poor girl never wanted anyone to see her cry. Harry looked even more worried than she did. I walked over to them and was reaching to hug my daughter when Harry jumped out and put himself between her and me.

"Sir, please don't punish Ginny. It wasn't her fault. I should have stopped it, please don't hurt her…" Harry was shaking scared but standing his ground.

I reached out and put my arm around his shoulder. He flinched and I let go automatically. I softly said, "Harry, I'd never hurt her. Professor McGonagall told me what happened, it wasn't her fault." I hugged Ginny tightly and Harry ended up in the mix as well.

Albus volunteered, "Harry and Ron found out where she was and went after her. Ron's in the medical ward for some bumps and bruises but he should be fine soon. Harry killed a basilisk but refuses to let Ginny be left alone."

"A basilisk? That was the monster in the Chamber?"

Harry said, "Yes, sir. Tom… Voldemort has been using Ginny. She was almost gone…"

I let them both go as Molly said, "Thank you Harry. I'm not sure what I would have done if we lost her."

Dumbledore filled us in on some more of the details. When he finished, he said, "Now, Mr. Potter, you do need to have Madam Pomfrey check you as well."

He looked a little reluctant but finally agreed. "Yes, Professor. Good-bye, Mr. Weasley, Mrs. Weasley. Ginny, I'll see you later," he said as he quickly squeezed her shoulder. Ginny nodded but kept staring at the floor.

After he left, Dumbledore said, "Ginny's excused from her classes for today, so you can stay in my office as long as you want. I need to go check on my school."

After he left, Molly said, "Ginny, dear, do you want to come home?"

"No, please. I need to stay. Take my end of year tests. I don't want to run away."

Her stubbornness was a relief. I patted her and said, "All right. But you let a professor, or your brothers or Harry know if you need help."

After a few minutes of silence, Molly said, "Something's not right with that boy at home."

"I think I have to agree." And after risking his life to save Ginny, I couldn't let him go back to what I feared was going on. "Ginny, would Harry staying with us this summer be ok with you?"

She smiled for the first time and nodded. Molly said, "Do what you need to, dear." Her trust in me meant so much.

I nodded and ran after Albus. He thankfully was walking quite leisurely and I caught up to him before he had gotten too far down the hallway, with no one else around. "Dumbledore, have you checked on conditions at Harry's life with his aunt and uncle?"

"They do not treat him as a son, but he is safe there. Also, getting away to a world where he is not a celebrity for a few months a year is good for the boy."

"I have to respectfully disagree, sir. He has had enough difficult circumstances… trauma… I don't think there is danger in the boy being spoiled, even if he ever figures out how many galleons the Potters had. He was locked in his room according to my boys last summer. Bars on the window."

Dumbledore was stubborn as ever. "Nevertheless, he needs to stay there for his own safety. With his mother's sacrifice, she enabled blood wards of protection as long as he lives with his mother's kin."

I shook his head and if it was any other man, I'd be screaming by now. "And do those wards of protection apply to his family?" His lack of response told me they didn't. "Did you see how he was in front of me? He was deathly afraid that I was going to beat my own daughter in front of him! Kids do not come up with ideas like that on their own."

"I believe his uncle has threatened him on occasion, but I would know if he ever was in any real danger."

"And being terrified his entire life isn't cause for concern? It's a wonder he didn't become an obscurus! Godric, help me! You may know students, but apparently you don't know children." I paused for a few seconds and forced myself to lower my voice a few levels. "I want Harry to come home with us. He needs people who care and love for him and he needs men in his life that aren't trying to scare him for being a wizard and put bars in his window or teachers who harass him for looking like his father or who seem intent on turning him into a weapon."

There was a brief flash in his eyes that he hid. "I can't allow that. He needs to return to his aunt's house every year to renew the wards."

I gave up on arguing with him and tried to not think too intently on my plans, just in case he caught a glimmer of it. "Well, I need to go then. Thank you for your time."

I walked back to his office where I found my wife holding my little girl, who was asleep. "He's becoming a stubborn old fool."

"So he won't let Harry come with us?"

"No. However, everything in the world is not up to Dumbledore, is it?"

I laid out my plan and she wholeheartedly agreed. I returned to work after that and put in for a few days off starting the day the Hogwarts Express arrived. That evening, I comforted my wife after the horrible events and the next morning, I visited the Department of Magical Law Enforcement to pull in whatever favors I had available.

 ***Ginny***

Eight days after the chamber, I was in my bed, alone. I clutched the green jumper my mother made me for Christmas tight in my arms. I had asked for green for two years now. Other than my brother, Harry, and Hermione, no one else really knew what had happened. But everyone knew that I was in the Chamber and when Harry came up with me, everything was put to right. So, everywhere I went, people either stopped whispering and avoided looking at me, or they couldn't stop staring. I was quite tired of it and so I had been staying in my bed except when I forced myself to eat or for end of term tests.

I'm not sure what was wrong with me… besides the obvious. I was having nightmares almost every night. Me and the chamber and Harry never coming. Harry saving me just in time for me to see the light go out of his eyes. Harry being ashamed of me for what I had done and never talking to me again… We hadn't really talked but that was more my avoiding him and everyone else than anything from him.

But when I took my potions test, I knew something more was wrong. Snape never gave any Gryffindor special treatment, but I finished the written test in half the time as anyone else. He angrily accused me of cheating and after a heated discussion with the headmaster, I was told I had to retake the test. I did by myself, after he had performed numerous detection spells on me, looking for cheating devices. It had made me feel light-headed and so tired. Then I took the test, him staring at me with his sunken eyes the entire time. The new version of the test was so hard, I was afraid I was going to fail. I barely finished in the allotted time.

For some reason, Snape must have convinced all the other professors I was trying to cheat. They all knew what had happened to me. My foolishness. They were never going to trust me again. For the rest of my tests, I took them by myself (though that did let me avoid the looks or non-looks of the other students), and they were all so hard.

Even though Dumbledore did not expel me for the diary, I was worried I was going to have to at least repeat my first year. I felt I knew more than I should have, but that was all a mistake. I must not have learned nearly what I should have. Or my memory had so many gaps… what was I taught that I had forgotten?

Hermione found me a few minutes later. "Ginny, Professor McGonagall gave this to me at breakfast. And also said she's going to drag you to a hospital bed if you don't get more regular meals." It was a note that she needed to talk to me about next year in her office.

This was it. I slowly got up and straightened my robes and left the girls' dormitory. Ron was beating Harry at chess yet again. When the raven-haired boy saw me, he looked into my eyes but he wasn't staring like the others. Tomorrow could be the last time I ever saw him if they changed their mind and were snapping my wand.

I walked up to him and quietly said, "I haven't made a lot of friends with my year, with everything…. Is it ok if I sat with you guys tomorrow on the train?" I put on my best doe eyes.

Harry, not hesitating a second, said, "Uh, sure, Ginny, that's fine." Ron didn't seem quite as agreeable, but didn't argue. I was happy for a moment.

Then I remembered why I was up and about in the first place. I quietly slinked to the Transformations classroom. I heard the matronly voice of my head of house say, "Come in Miss Weasley and sit down." After I did, she said "Have a biscuit," and didn't continue until I did.

"I apologize for the deception, but the headmaster insisted you not be aware. You no doubt realize that your exams this year were a bit unusual."

I nodded. "Yes, ma'am."

"Well, after you had a perfect score in Potions in record time, Professor Dumbledore insisted on giving you a combination of the second and third year tests."

I was speechless.

"He suspects you may have retained some information from your experiences this last year. Tom Riddle became a horrible person but at one point he was a brilliant student. Based on how well you did, you would not receive much benefit from second year classes, much of which is review from first year. If you like and your parents agree, you can move up another level."

"Really? And be in the same class as Ron and… Har.. Hermione?"

"Indeed. You also would be in Hermione's dorm room. You may benefit from having someone older around. I'm not sure your current classmates will all be mature enough to help you… if you need it."

I grinned in relief. "I'd like that, Professor."

"I thought you would. Here's a letter for your parents with an explanation. If I don't hear differently, you'll be receiving a third-year list in August."

"Thank you, Professor." I took her leave and shoved the envelope in a pocket and started to pack my foot locker.

I was worried the next morning that Harry would have changed his mind about me sitting with them. I was done with my second hand robes for the year finally. I found a pink tee and a pair of blue jeans that had a yellow flower sewn on the right pocket. I didn't always like wearing such girly clothes, but asking for them was a way to guarantee I wouldn't be wearing something that Ron had outgrew. One of the disadvantages of a large family but an advantage in being the only girl.

I found the compartment Ron and Harry were in, both of them having taken a window seat. My heart sank as I realized he had the opposite problem, and it was much worse. Then my head woke up and reminded me that I always acted like an idiot in front of him and why was I here?

I was stuck there frozen in the door, which wasn't any better. Finally, I heard a cough and felt a nudge. "Ginny, better door than a window…" said Hermione.

I snapped back to reality and moved to the side. "Huh?"

"Sorry, muggle expression." Ron sat there, perplexed. Hermione sat next to him and winked at me. "Honestly, Ronald…"

"Oh… that's brilliant. Though wouldn't always apply to you, Harry."

"What?" I asked.

"Oh, bugger," Ron said.

Harry interrupted. "It's fine. Ginny can you close the door?"

I nodded and took the only seat left. "What's the big secret?"

Harry said, "I have an invisibility cloak. It was my dad's."

"Wow… think of all the fun you could have with that. But it was your dad's?"

"Yeah, it's kind of special to me," he said a little sheepishly.

"No, that's cool! It's just like, pretty much all cloaks like that only last a year at most." I paused. "At least I think so."

Hermione said, "I didn't know that."

Harry said, "You picked up some things. From when he was a student."

I nodded my head, afraid. He could tell. "Don't worry about it, Ginny. I probably speak parseltongue due to this scar. It's not made me bad or anything. Same with you."

"Thanks," I said, relieved.

I settled down and stared at the window over Harry's shoulder. I was on my knees so I could see over him without leaning on him. He and Ron were busy playing a muggle card game Hermione had taught them. Harry won and Ron announced he was going to have a kip.

With the swaying of the train, Ron soon fell asleep. Rather than be drooled on, Hermione decided to check in on Neville and Collin.

A few minutes later, Harry whispered, "I'm having nightmares about the chamber. Are you?"

I nodded, slowly. "I'm sorry."

"Ginny, it's not your fault. I know every adult you've talked to has said that. But you fought him for almost a year. You took the diary back after I found it?"

"I didn't want you to be taken too."

"You let Voldemort hurt you to protect me. Just like… just like my mum. You were brave. I was so scared to see you lying there…."

I didn't feel at all brave, but I was starting to see Harry for who he really was. "Thanks."

"I can't stand the stares. People looking at me for something I didn't do and don't remember. Like I picked being famous for my parents dying. I'd trade everything for my family."

"I… I get that." Every illusion I had of Harry was crumbling.

"Can I tell you a secret? You'll be the only one that might understand."

I nodded. "Yes."

"I felt a connection with him… last year with the stone and Quirrell. And this year. Like he's always near."

I did understand. "I feel an echo still. Like someone else has lived here and left a box or two."

"At least I got the whole snake talking thing out of it."

"I have a surprise too… I wasn't telling my brother over there before Mum and Dad, but I remember enough from Tom's school years that I'm being moved up a year."

"Brilliant! It'll be great to have another friend in class."

My heart skipped a beat. "Are we friends?"

"I'd like to be, if you want."

I grinned. He was just a normal boy who could use another friend. So could I.

"I do." Without thinking, I reached over and hugged him for a minute. "For both our nightmares. I'll make myself remember that you are here, that you are ok. You do the same."

Hermione came back soon after that and nudged Ron awake. As we approached London, Harry became sullen. "I'm going to miss you all. Please write me. If you don't get a response, please tell someone. My uncle knows I'm not allowed to do magic outside of school. I'm scared of what he'll do."

 ***Arthur***

The morning after the children were home from school, I woke up to the smell of bacon frying. I spent more time than usual getting ready on a day that I had off. Shave, brush hair, put on my muggle-style suit. I needed to make my best impression for this to work.

But first, I had to talk to my sons. Breakfast was the usual raucous affair. Percy was starting his internship at the ministry next week and trying to read while the twins were being extra loud trying to distract him. Ron was busy eating anything laid in front of him while Ginny was quieter than usual. Molly was delighted to have a full house again, but also exasperated at the antics.

Once everyone was finishing up, Molly stepped in to distract Ginny. "Dear, I was going to make a pie later today. Can you go check the bushes in the back?"

She was about to protest, but Molly said. "You'd rather do that than what the boys are doing today." Ginny tried to smile, found a basket, and headed out.

"Boys, I need your full attention for a few minutes," I said after they had cleared their plates. They slowly sat back down.

I didn't have a great way to start, so I just came out with it. "I am very disappointed that none of you were looking out for Ginny. Not even enough to realize she was being possessed by You-Know-Who, being forced to be out of bed at all hours doing who knows what. Percy. You're a perfect. It's not just a badge you get to wear. I'd have expected you to take a closer notice of all the younger students, especially family. Fred, George… with all the running around that place you do, you could have helped. Ron, you and Ginny were inseparable the last couple years. Did you once try to include her with your friends?"

I paused, waiting for arguments that didn't come.

Finally, I said, "And I should have been more involved and I feel more blame than anyone else. If I hadn't lost my temper with Malfoy, she may have never had the blasted diary to begin with.

"We all were too involved with our own lives and friends. I hope we can all fix that. I love all of you boys and Ginny and we will all have tough times in our life where we need each other. Family first."

They all nodded and slowly began to look at me again. "And there is someone else that needs our help. I was grateful for you busting Harry out of his room last summer, but I'm afraid he's going to get the same treatment or worse now. I'm going to his uncle's house this afternoon and will do everything in my power for them to sign over guardianship to your mother and I. If I'm successful, he'll be living here permanently."

Ron blurted out, "That would be brilliant, Dad!"

Fred and George agreed. Molly added, "Don't tell Ginny. If they resist, we are filing criminal reports and it could be long and difficult." They let us know they understood.

Molly then added, "Now off with you! I need the garden degnomed and weeded before you lot scatter."

I spent a good part of the rest of the day reviewing my paperwork and passing the time in the shed, looking at my plug collection. Finally, it was time to go. I walked to the edge of our boundaries and apparated out.

I appeared in Ms. Figg's yard. It was the closest location where the tell-tale crack wouldn't be suspicious. I walked over to the Dursley's and rang the doorbell.

A large, oafish boy answered. "What?" he asked rudely.

"I'd like to talk to your father, if he's available."

"Dad!" He yelled out. "Visitor!"

Harry's uncle appeared a few minutes later. "Eh, who are you? I already told Petunia, we didn't need another vacuum."

"No, sir. I'm here on a matter related to your nephew."

At that, his face paled and he shoved me inside, quickly closing the door. "Are you a solicitor? What has he done now?"

"Not exactly. I actually am here to take him off your hands, if you let me."

He eyed me suspiciously. "What are you playing at? Is there some money I don't know about?"

There was, I supposed, but I wasn't going to discuss that. "No, nothing like that. He's a friend of my children and I think everyone involved would be happier this way."

"You're… you're one of them, aren't you." The words seethed out of his mouth.

"Yes… but wait!" He was about to push me out the door. "If you agree, we will all be out of your life and you'll never be bothered again."

An unsettling grin appeared on his face. "I can agree to that. Where do I sign?"

I unfurled the parchment and explained, "This is a voluntary permanent transfer of custody and guardianship. Bottom left there's a line for your name."

I never had seen a man hurry to find a pen so quickly. "Your wife needs to sign too."

He yelled out "Petunia!" and charged after her. Five minutes later, he appeared with two signatures.

Molly had already signed and I drew a quill to put my name to paper and finalize the document. Vernon said, "And this is guaranteed permanent?"

"Yes, but that's not going to be an issue regardless." I paused for a bit as all of it came crashing together. These… people… had just signed away their nephew to a complete stranger. No regard for anything but getting him out of their door. I could have been a murderer or worse for all they knew!

I swallowed my anger before I lost control. I calmly took the quill, signed my name, and neatly folded the authorization into my pocket. "Now, if you'll show me where Harry is, we won't take any more of your time."

Vernon grunted and said, "Top of the stairs, first door." He turned around and went into his living room without another word.

I cautiously walked up the stairs and undid the lock on the doorknob. Harry was sitting on his bed facing the wall. A few pieces of bread were half-gnawed on the floor.

He turned around and had the shock of his life. "Mr. Weasley?"

"Hello, Harry. How are you doing."

"I'm fine. A little bored and hungry, maybe."

"Well, I'm here to fix all that." I sat down next to his bed. "I've just finished a conversation with your uncle and if you want, you can come live at the Burrow."

"I won't have to see them until next year?"

I smiled. "No, Harry. You won't have to see them ever again, unless you want. Molly and I will be your new guardians. If that is what you want."

"Why? You don't have to…"

"We want to."

He nodded, apparently still not quite believing. "I'll pack your things." With a couple quick flicks of my wand, the few sets of clothes he had taken out we're back in his foot locker. He must not have bothered to get anything else out. "You have Hedwig?"

"Yes, sir."

I put one hand on his things and another around his arm. "Hold on, this may feel a little strange."

In a blink, we were back at the border of the Burrow's wards. I sent Harry's things floating on ahead of us to Bill's old room, which was now Harry's and directly above my daughter's. We had the space and he didn't need to be sharing with Ron anymore.

I put an arm around him and said, "Welcome home."

 ***Ginny***

Dad had said he would be gone for an hour or so and he wanted me to help Mum in the kitchen. She was working on a roast and had me chopping vegetables while my brothers were outside gardening. I so wished I was allowed to use magic to chop carrots and potatoes and especially the onions. I forgot the advice about not rubbing my eyes which made it worse. Mum also was baking a couple more rolls than she usually did. I didn't think Bill or Charlie were coming.

"Ginny, how about you fix your hair and put something else on."

"Mum, it's fine."

"Ginevra, sometimes you ought to trust your mother…"

Ok, something was up and I didn't feel like arguing at the moment. "Fine." Thankfully, the bathroom was clear and not a total disaster. Sharing with six boys growing up… I got used to a lot of different smells. I put on a purple blouse and spent a few minutes brushing down my hair. After a full day, it often poofed out to the point of looking like a mane. I had stopped wearing two braids and decided a simple ponytail would work. I took my brush and dirty shirt back to my room just in time to see a foot locker float up to Bill's old room.

"Mum, what's going on?" I asked as I walked downstairs.

My dad was back, hanging up his suit coat while Harry stood in the middle of the living room.

"Harry?"

"Hey, Ginny."

Dad said, "I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner, but I didn't want to make you worry, with everything else you've had to deal with."

I grimaced. I was always babied as the youngest and the only girl and now it was ten times worse. Then Dad continued. "Harry is moving in with us. We couldn't let him stay with those people anymore."

"Forever?"

Dad chuckled. "At least until he's old enough for a place of his own." Did I just hear that right?

Harry looked down at the floor for a few seconds and then asked me, "Is that ok?" I responded by running over and hugging him as tightly as I could.

"Of course, I'll love having you here."

He awkwardly returned the hug. "I'm not used to all this still."

Mum was over soon and joined me. "You will be," she said.

A loud trampling indicated my brothers had finally walked in. Ron yelled, "Harry! Dad worked things out?"

"Yeah, I don't know what your dad did, but it must have been brilliant to convince them to let me go."

"That's great. I can have someone watching my back with those two." He motioned to the twins. "Supper ready?"

"You all need to get out of gardening clothes and wash up first!" Mum said.

Harry joined them, he looked like he needed a moment too. I gave my mother a quick squeeze and whispered, "Thanks."

She smiled. "I knew you didn't want a repeat of when you came down in your dressing robe last summer."

In a few minutes, we were all seated. Harry was between Ron and me. My youngest brother said, "This looks great, Mum. I'm hungry."

Harry added, "Thanks, Mrs. Weasley."

Mum said, "Ginny helped with the vegetables. I wasn't sure if you had eaten supper yet."

"No, ma'am."

Dad spoke up. "I don't think he had breakfast or lunch yet either."

Harry looked a little embarrassed. "This is better than anything I would have gotten anyway, Mrs. Weasley."

At some urging, Harry finished off a two helpings. Afterwards, my brothers scattered to their rooms. I started going upstairs and then Harry got up and started clearing the dishes. "I'll get that, dear," Mum said. "You've had a long day."

"Please let me help." He stood there pleading.I quietly watched from the stairs.

She nodded and said, "Just stack the dishes, I have a spell to wash them. Thank you."

He put the plates down and hugged Mum tightly and I could hear a whimper turn into tears. She softly quieted him and he let go a couple minutes later.

Harry slowly walked to the stairs, his eyes red. Before he could say anything, I said, "I understand, Harry. I felt so alone this last year. I can barely think of having eleven years like that."

He silently nodded. "I think… I think I'm going to lie down. It's been tiring."

"Yeah." Sleeping was still a bit hard for me too. "I'll help you with some sheets."

The linen closet was actually near his bedroom. "We don't have anything too fancy. We have red and yellow."

"I'll take the red, please." I fished out two sheets, a pillow, and a blanket, though he probably wouldn't need it.

I leaned over and handed him the bundle. I said, "Good night," and before I knew it, I softly kissed his cheek.

He didn't freak out or push me away. He whispered back, and said "Thanks, Gin," as he grazed his lips on my left cheek.

He closed the door and I stood there heart pounding, not able to move. No one else would he allowed to call me that.

I finally went to my room, feeling funny but not sick. I slipped on a light nightgown and fell asleep.

In my dreams, I was back in the chamber. There was the pain as I felt myself slowly drift away. And then Harry was there and I remembered that this was all over and he was barely ten feet above me. Suddenly, I was on a horse riding through Diagon Alley. Dreams are weird.

I woke up pretty early in the morning since I finally had a full night's sleep. I was rewarded in having a bath for more than five minutes.

When I was done, I put on a pair of blue jean shorts and a v-cut red tee. I walked downstairs and saw Fred and George sitting quietly. Too quietly.

"What'd you do…" I asked with suspicion.

"My dear sister."

"Whatever do you mean?"

Suddenly, I heard a yell of surprise from upstairs and a trample down the stairs.

"Harry's up," Fred said casually.

Suddenly, at the bottom of the stairs, stood a Harry with bright red hair, just in time for mum to run inside to see what the commotion was.

"Boys!"

Harry smiled and sat down on the table next to me. "It's ok. I was just surprised."

George said, "We thought he should have a proper introduction as an honorary Weasley."

"Thanks," he said. "However, you do realize that turnabout is fair play and your sister's picked up a lot of your tricks. If you'll help me, Gin."

I tousled his hair and said, "Of course."

The twins acted in mock fear and scurried outside. "I like the black better," I said.

"I still have pickled toad eyes though."

I felt heat rise to my face in embarrassment. "I'm just taking the mickey on you. It was the only valentine I've ever gotten."

Molly broke the awkwardness and said, "Well, I will have to get after them for not being able to undo their little prank." She picked up her wand, muttered an incantation and suddenly his hair was back to the normal raven black. "That's better. How about you and Ginny go feed the chickens?"

"Sure." I was less confident but I didn't want to make my mother worry. Harry was already at the door and I hurried to follow.

I tensed up as we got close to the coop. It was bright red and had a dozen hens and a rooster. Enough for Mum and Dad and one or two of us, but not when everyone was home. Harry asked, "Thinking about Hagrid's roosters?"

"Yeah."

"Tom showed me some memories… one with you in feathers and blood. You can stay back if you want."

"No, I need to do this." I walked ahead of him and started filling the water trough. Once I started, I was able to stay distracted. Halfway through, I forced myself to ask, "What else did he show you?

Harry was scooping the corn for them. "Uh, you painting the wall. Writing in the diary and trying to get rid of it. He was bragging to me, really. Like he was so big for hurting a first year girl." He was getting mad and then paused for a moment. "I didn't see anything um, private."

That was a relief. I showed him all the hens. "I used to have names for them all last year. But there's been a few new ones when I was at school."

"Ow!" Harry yelped. A big black chicken came from behind him.

"Margaret's a bit anxious around strangers," I explained.

Harry said, "I think she almost walked away with a piece of me."

Ron called out as he walked from the house. "Hey, you two done? I just finished up in the kitchen. I was going to go swimming."

"Sure!" I hadn't been in the water since last summer. A good pond was something Hogwarts could have used.

Harry stammered. "I don't have anything to put on."

Ron said, "Mum can find an old pair and adjust the fit. Come on!"

Harry finally agreed. I ran upstairs to my room and found my suit from last year. I closed the windows, put on a swim cap, and then my suit. It was pink and honestly maybe a little bit too little-girl. It was a one piece with a small diamond cut out, showing just a little bit of stomach. I wasn't sure if Dad was ever going to let me have a two piece. Not that I had anything worth showing. At any rate, it fit, maybe a little tight. I hoped I wasn't done growing already. I grabbed a green towel and headed out.

The boys had already left the house. Typical. I ran to catch up with them and saw Harry sitting at the edge of the stream, his legs dangling over, while I saw Ron's head bobbing in and out of the water, everything else submerged.

I dropped the towel next to Harry and then got a running start and jumped in. I almost leapt back out, it was so cold. I should have remembered, it normally was pretty chilly until July.

I swam from one side to the other and back, about forty feet total. Harry was still just sitting there. I swam up to him and put my hands on his calves under the water. "Do I need to pull you in?"

"I'm not that good of a swimmer, Gin." Come to think of it, he had always found a reason to not last summer.

"You're not gonna get better sitting here. The current's not strong or anything. And I'll protect you," I said with a smile.

Harry didn't make any more excuses. He stood up, revealing a pair of faded blue trunks, I thought they had been Charlie's a long time ago. He took off his shirt. I could see the outline of his ribs, but he wasn't starving. I was so glad Dad got him away from his uncle when he did.

Harry slowly slipped in. "Merlin, that's cold."

Ron said, "It's fine once you get it over with."

"All right, here we go." He dunked himself completely under and came up a moment later.

"Better?" I smiled.

Ron grabbed a small rubber ball and yelled, "Keep away from Shorty!" as he threw it over my head and into Harry's waiting hands.

"No fair!" I said playfully. I swam over towards Harry, who had tossed it back to Ron.

After a couple throws, I decided that Ron was too tall for me to get it from him, and Harry was too good of a Seeker to miss the ball either.

I had a chance with him, though. After the next time he caught it, I did something I had only dreamed of. As best as I could in the water, I jumped onto him, grabbing him around the shoulders.

"Hey!" he said. He quickly put his hands behind his back, keeping the ball out of reach.

I wasn't giving up that easily. I reached around his right side. "Not happening, Gin."

Suddenly, he took a breath and went limp, pulling us both under.

I jumped out squealing and then giggling. "You prat!"

"Here," he said giving me the ball after he got up. "You deserve it." He had a big grin on his face.

Ron came over, with almost a look if shock. He gave me a great big hug that I returned.

"What was that for?"

"I haven't heard you really laugh in such a long time. I missed it."


	2. Year 3, Part 2

***Arthur***

The first few weeks of summer went by quickly. Harry was taking his time to get comfortable in his new home, but he was slowly allowing himself to act as family and not a guest or the help or a house elf.

I was busier at work as the other member of my department had won a sweepstakes while I was out dealing with Harry's legal issues. He was on Safari in Kenya.

On the afternoon of July second an owl delivered a letter from Gringotts that was a warning things were going to change.

It read:

 _To Mr. Arthur Weasley_

 _Upon our quarterly balancing of the books on the Potter estate, it was discovered that you and Mrs. Weasley are the legal magical guardians of Mr. Harry Potter._

 _Per the terms of his parents' wills, he is allowed a stipend of one hundred galleons per month to be withdrawn with your consent, not including necessary schooling expenses._

 _This is cumulative so his available balance is approximately 14,400. His current liquid assets are approximately one hundred thousand galleons along with his real estate holdings and paper assets. A more detailed report may be discussed at Gringotts at your convenience._

 _Regards,_

 _Griphook_

 _Potter Account Manager_

I was shocked. I knew the Potters had been wealthy; they were an old but small family that had created some widely-selling products. But this… I'd have to think about what to tell Harry. What I definitely didn't want was him trying to pay us for room and board. We didn't need it and I didn't want people to whisper that was why we took him in. There would be enough gossip regardless.

I should have been prepared for what happened next. I was home the afternoon of the third. It was raining quite heavily, so Ron, Harry, and Ginny were in Ron's room looking through a stack of Quidditch magazines that Ron had kept. Some of them were several years old and they thought the uniforms from my time were a bit of a lark. The twins were doing something in their room that was making an awful lot of racket and some strong odd odors.

Molly said, "Those two will be the death of me. Or the ruin of this house. Arthur, you need to at least make sure they are being careful."

"I can set them up in my shed."

"Oh, no. The last thing I need is a flying car that shoots out fireworks or some such foolishness."

I gave her a quick kiss and said, "You love my foolishness, Mollywobbles…"

"Sometimes, dear. It's sweet." She smiled and nuzzled into my neck. "I have… twenty minutes if you want to practice some silencing charms."

I grinned and kissed her softly on the lips. "I never have to be asked twice."

She cast a spell to sound an alarm if anything caught on fire and we were halfway up the first flight of stairs when there was a loud persistent knocking on the door.

I sighed. Molly smiled and said, "Later, Arthur. It sounds important."

I looked through the keyhole and saw Albus Dumbledore standing there, with a look that was none too cheerful. I quietly said a few words that Molly didn't approve of me saying in front of the children and opened the door.

"Arthur, may I come in?"

"Certainly."

He walked through the door and Molly offered him a seat in the living room. He didn't waste time on pleasantries. "I don't know what to say. I tried warning you but you acted anyway and the wards around Privet Drive are down. Harry is in danger. He's unprotected."

I tried to not get too upset before speaking. "Albus, please listen this time. Harry was not safe there, not really. I can't imagine he was better off alone there than here with us.

"He was protected from Voldemort. He's trying to come back."

I lost my temper. "Don't you think I know that? I'm the one with the daughter who still screams in the night. There is no safety. Hogwarts was supposed to be safe but Voldemort almost killed two of the kids in this house at school over the last two years. You know the only safe place is? Azkaban." I paused for a minute, thinking of what to say. "You don't get to trade Harry's happiness for his safety. He'll get neither."

Molly spoke up. "You've said love is the greatest magic of all. Yet Harry has known so very little. Only indifference. Which can be worse than hate."

Dumbledore sighed in resignation. "I didn't want to think it was that bad. I may have been blinded. There was a prophecy. It explains more, when Harry is older."

"What is it?" He hesitated and said, "As his guardian, I'll just take him tomorrow to the ministry and hear it ourselves."

Dumbledore softly chanted a spell and I saw an image of the twins' divination professor. She spoke with an unearthly voice and foretold Harry's doom, to be marked by Voldemort and either kill or be killed.

Molly was speechless. I said, "It always seemed strange for him to be obsessed with a small boy. At least we know why now... we will tell him when we think he needs to know. I'd like him to be able to be just a boy for just a little longer. Merlin knows he hasn't had much of a chance so far."

Dumbledore said, "Thank you. This of course needs to be in the strictest confidence. And if I could impose upon you, I'd like to perform the Fidelius charm on your house. I'd feel better about all this with the added protection."

I had heard of it. I looked at Molly and she nodded. "Thank you we'd appreciate that. Could you act as secret keeper?" Bill and Charlie were not around and I didn't really have any friends I trusted with our lives.

He nodded, "I'd be honored. Preparation will take some time. It will probably be close to beginning of next term before I'm ready."

Molly said, "As long as you are here, could we convince you to stay for tea?"

He nodded. "Thanks. I wouldn't mind seeing how they are doing after this last spring."

 ***Ginny***

I was walking back to Ron's room after using the loo. He had been trying quite hard but unsuccessfully to turn Harry into a Chudley Cannons fan. I thought he had enough heartbreak already in his life to put that on him. But I stayed out of it and read an interview of my favorite professional Quidditch player, Gwenog Jones. I liked the Harpies not just because they were an all-witch team, but because of that, they had to try twice as hard to get half the respect. Something I could see in my own life sometimes.

I heard a heated conversation downstairs and a voice I hadn't expected to hear for a few more months. I opened Ron's door to find Harry glancing at the article I was reading. "You can't be a Harpies fan," bemoaned Ron.

"Why not?" I asked.

"Because they are…" He shut up before he knew what was good for him.

Harry said, "I'm just reading an article… She seems to know her stuff. And a witch on a broom can be pretty cute too."

I wasn't sure if that was a compliment or put-down to my gender. Before I had time to answer back, Fred and George came from behind me. Fred said, "Either way, I don't want to imagine Wood as a girl."

Harry chuckled at that. George said, "Speaking of our magnificent captain, he said he was going to try to put a reserve team. Seems a certain Seeker not staying out of the hospital wing has made him a tad nervous. Do you think any of the blokes in your year might be interested?"

Harry said, "I'm not sure. Neville, I couldn't see that. Seamus likes muggle football much more and Dean's more of an artist than athlete. That just leaves Ron."

Ron said, "I've thought Keeper might be fun, but I can't imagine Wood ever needing a substitute."

"Hey!" I said. "You're forgetting about half the students. I've always wanted to play Chaser."

George said, "You've never flown before."

"You know how all the brooms are in the shed outside?"

"Yeah…." Fred replied.

"You two aren't the only ones who can sneak around." I grinned. "I love flying at night."

"Ok, well, there's Ginny then."

George then said, "What about Peter?"

"Who?" Harry asked.

"There's a boy in your class, Peter Pettigrew, right? Would he try out?"

"No there's no one else. Where did you get that idea?"

Fred glanced at George. "Go ahead, show them."

George went scampering off to his room. Meanwhile, Ron's rat Scabbers was going crazy, squealing and banging against his cage. Ron shushed him but it didn't help.

Fred said, "We found a map of Hogwarts, written by some group called the Marauders. But it's special. It shows locations of secret passages and…"

George came in and shut the door. He tapped a blank piece of parchment and said, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

Suddenly, an outline of the castle appeared and names throughout the building. We saw Filch in the hallways, probably sweeping as he moved back and forth. Professor McGonagall was having tea with Hagrid in her office.

Fred said, "We've seen a person named Peter Pettigrew right next to Ron's bed, on his left side. At the end of the year, we started to keep an eye on your room and Ginny's. If we had done that sooner, we may have saved you a lot of problems, Ginny."

I nodded. "I'm happy you did look out for me end of the year."

George said, "That's when we noticed this Peter fellow, although we never met."

Ron said, "Harry was on my left. There's a spot between us, but the only thing there is Hedwig and Scabbers."

This was really odd, and I didn't need anything new to worry about at school. "Well, Dumbledore's here, let's go ask him about it." It seemed like a pretty obvious plan.

The five of us trampled downstairs. The adults weren't yelling anymore, which was good. Dumbledore smiled at us. "Harry, I'm happy to see you safe and well. Were your ears burning?"

"Sir?"

Fred interrupted. "Professor, we have an odd situation." He waited before Dumbledore motioned for him to continue. "We have… we may have a map that shows the locations of people inside Hogwarts. It's always seemed to be accurate, but it is showing an extra person in Harry and Ron's dorm."

Mum was about to scold them for having something like that, but Dumbledore raised his hand. "Very interesting and if I were here on headmaster duties I'd likely have to confiscate it. However, the situation is different at the moment. May I ask the name of this mystery student?"

George responded, "Peter Pettigrew."

If I had ever seen Dumbledore shocked, that would have been the time. "Peter Pettigrew, you say…. He's dead. Killed by…." I saw the wheels in his head spin like a top. He paused for several minutes. "I always suspected that James and his friends…"

Harry interrupted . "James! My dad?"

"Yes, Harry, your father had three best mates in Hogwarts, they called themselves the Marauders, namely Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, and Sirius Black."

Dad said, "Sirius Black, the murderer?"

Dumbledore said, "Yes, Sirius is in Azkaban for aiding Voldemort in going after Harry's parents . And then Peter confronted him and was killed... or so the ministry says. If Peter is alive, the entire account may be incorrect."

Harry looked like he was going to be sick.

Dumbledore finally added, "I always suspected that the Marauders learned to be animagi… wizards who can change into an animal," he added for our benefit. "James called Peter a rat in jest more than once…"

"Scabbers!" Ron yelled and he ran upstairs before anyone could stop him. Harry was right behind him.

From across the room, Dad yelled "Boys!" and got up after them.

I heard some muffled yelling and then an explosion that almost knocked my small frame to the ground. I screamed "Harry!" and chased after Dad.

My room was missing the outer wall. All my clothes were strewn about and Ron lay face down on the floor. Harry was at the window, about to jump. When he saw Dad and me, he stepped back.

"Dad…" I couldn't deal with someone else being hurt now.

He said, "It's ok pumpkin, he's just stunned."

Dad pointed his wand at Ron's forehead, muttered a spell, and he slowly began to wake up. Dad slowly helped him get up. "You all right, son?"

"Yeah, thanks, Dad. There was a man here… a bit taller than me, fat… kind of ugly."

Dumbledore finally entered and said, "That might be him." From his wand, a an image appeared, floating next to him.

There were four boys in a hallway in Hogwarts. One looked incredibly like Harry, down to the tousled hair, just not the eyes. One lanky boy who didn't look completely well was keeping an eye on them while another one with mischievous eyes looked like he was ready to get into trouble. The fourth seemed a bit out of place. "Ron, does the short boy look familiar?"

"Maybe… could be the same as the man in here, as a kid. It happened so fast."

Harry had come back from the hole in the wall and stared at the image until Dumbledore banished it. A single tear went down his cheek. Dad put an arm around him. "It's ok to miss them, you know."

He nodded.

Dumbledore asked, "Harry, did you see the man?"

"Just barely. Ron got a better look."

"Still… two accounts would be better than one." He looked at Ron and then Harry and said, "May I record your memories of the event to show the ministry?" They both nodded. "Think hard about what the intruder looked like… there we are."

Using his wand Dumbledore pulled a silvery wisp from Ron's temple and placed it in a small bottle, then stoppered it. He then did the same thing with Harry. "I can't promise anything, but I will do my best to help Sirius if he really is innocent."

I gasped as I realized why my room was turned out. I reached into my top dresser drawer. "Harry, where's your wand?"

He reached into his back pocket. "I could never keep it out at the Dursley's, so I have kind of been wearing it most days." He added, "I know I'm not allowed to use it."

"Mine's gone." It hasn't been anything special, a hand-me-down, but I still felt a little violated. Plus the fact that the man had overheard private conversations and seen me in a nightgown. Probably less.

Merlin… he could have… done anything. I started to feel myself breathe and then the room began to spin and then everything was dark.

I found myself on the couch in the living room. Harry was the first person I saw. "Hey, Gin…"

"How long was I out?" I immediately asked.

"Just a couple minutes or so. Your mother is making sure Ron is ok and the twins are moving your things up to Charlie's old room. They figured you'd want a place that had four walls." I tried to smile.

"Percy is home and he, your dad, and Dumbledore are checking the yard, but chances of them finding that rat… Percy feels responsible since it was his pet first." He paused for a moment. "Can I get you something?"

I shook my head and sat up. "No, just stay here… I feel dirty. Peter going through my things… Tom taking my memories…"

He awkwardly put an arm around me. Part of me wanted to push it away but I was too tired to protest. I finally leaned back into his arm. "I'm never going to forget it."

"Scars can be on the inside too," he said. I nodded and we stayed like that for several minutes.

Eventually, Dad and Percy came back, though without Peter. Dumbledore had gone back to Hogwarts but promised to look into everything. Mum fed Ron a sandwich and he felt better.

The twins came down and insisted on showing me my new room. This room was a little smaller and only had a single window. There was a green curtain in front of it. My bed was under the window and they had even moved my dresser and refolded my clothes.

"Sorry about your Harpies poster," said George. "Most of it was blown to bits and the rest wasn't worth hanging."

I gave both of my brothers hugs. "We'll be right below you if you need anything tonight," said Fred. "Oh, we figure you should have this."

He handed a piece of paper. "It's the map. Touch it and say 'I solemnly swear I am up to no good.' And say 'Mischief Managed' to hide it."

George added, "We thought it might help you feel safe next year. Make sure you make good use of it."

"Thanks again."

Sometimes having older brothers could be nice.

 ***Arthur***

During the third week of July, Dumbledore surprised me at work. He looked rather off and I insisted he sit down. "Thank you, Arthur. I just got back from Azkaban. It took a while and having to get permission from one of the aurors, Kingsley, but I interviewed Sirius under veritaserum and got some memories from him."

"My sakes… how did it go?"

"Well, he looked better than most prisoners do after eleven years with those horrid creatures. Most are dead or insane by that point. And I believe my initial thoughts were correct. Sirius and Peter switched being secretkeeper and then Peter gave the Potter's over to Voldemort. When Sirius confronted him, Peter took the opportunity to frame him and fake his own death."

He paused to catch his breath. I handed him a bit of chocolate I had stored. "Thank you. Anyway, I should have enough to get Sirius the trial he never had."

"That would be wonderful. Sirius is the closest thing to his parents that Harry has."

"Other than you. You and Molly truly have done a good thing, taking him in. Even if this works and Sirius can be involved in Harry's life, he will be better having you as parental figures."

"Thanks. We've only done what's right."

"It's been much more than that." He got up. "Well, I should get back. I will let you know as this develops."

Dumbledore's unexpected statement of confidence did encourage me to have a conversation I had been putting off but needed to do. After another excellent meal from my bride, I asked Harry to join me in the study. Ron and Ginny went up to their rooms. The three of them had been pretty inseparable, but I realized they were both spending time with Harry and the other person just happened to be around. I was concerned about what school would bring, especially with Ginny advancing an extra grade. However, I did trust that the boys would heed the talk we had at the beginning of the school year.

Harry walked in a bit timidly. "You're not in trouble." I still had to reassure him. He sat down. "I've been working with Gringotts to get a proper record of your inheritance. Your vault has about a hundred thousand galleons, of which you get a hundred galleon stipend each month. You've barely spent any of it."

I then handed him a stack of papers."You also own several properties throughout Britain and France — farms, business locations, mainly. As well as some investments in magical and muggle stocks and loans. The money they've made has been reinvested and is worth around a million galleons."

Harry shuddered a bit. "Wow… you should get something for taking care of me."

I gently but firmly placed a hand on him. "Harry, we will have none of that sort of talk. We asked you to live here because we care for you, not because we wanted something. Now, you can use your money to buy your school supplies and the occasional treat or gift, but part of being your guardian is teaching you life lessons that school doesn't teach."

He nodded and said, "Yes, sir. I just want to do my part. You're done so much for me."

"It's what families do." I paused for a moment, preparing myself for a bit of awkwardness. "And I'm not going to try to replace your dad, but I want you to be able to talk about anything you need to."

"K, I'll remember that."

I guessed I wasn't going to get him to bring this up on his own… "Harry, have you ever had anyone talk to you about men and women and babies and such?"

He shifted in his seat uncomfortably. "My uncle never did, of course. I heard some stuff from older guys at school before Hogwarts. Professor Flitwick had an extra class for the boys last year that I went to. He explained most of it and growing up stuff."

"Probably not a lot about how to court a witch you like though."

"No, sir."

"Well, you are pretty young still, so if you aren't interested in any girls yet, that's ok. If you do have any questions, I'll do my best. I was once your age too. I know girls can be quite confusing."

"Yeah, I've figured that out. Sometimes, I feel funny and nervous and happy…" he stopped himself suddenly. He was a little red.

"You don't have to be embarrassed. If there is someone special that's not a bad thing."

He didn't want to look at me. I said, "There is someone you fancy, isn't there."

He nodded. "I don't want you to get mad at me."

"Why would I…." I stopped myself and realized the issue and realized things were going to get complicated. "Does this girl happen to live in this house?"

He nodded again. "I'm sorry."

"Harry, there's nothing to be sorry about."

"I can still stay?" He perked up.

"I told you that no matter what you do, we will never send you away."

"I know, but it's hard. I thought you would be cross with me."

I shook my head. "Harry, it's ok. You can talk to me."

"I'll try… Ginny means a lot to me, ever since the chamber. She gets some of the stuff I've been through and she's fun and pretty… she is one of my best friends but I feel a bit different when she's around. Not like when I'm with Ron."

I sat back for a moment. "Well, you are both still young but I won't say you can't like someone. You both have had a rough time of it you, so I would want you to take things really slow... But if you want to tell her how you feel at some time, I won't be cross."

He smiled. "I'm a bit too scared to do that now."

"As you probably should be. You'll know when you are both ready. Be prepared to say something first, even with a strong girl like my daughter. I'd ask you strictly follow two rules."

He listened intently. "Yes, Mr. Weasley?"

"First, please be very careful, for both your sakes. If one of you breaks the other's heart, it'll be very difficult for everyone living here. That is the only reason I'm worried about this. Secondly, and this is more for quite some time in the future… Ginny's my princess and I expect anyone dating her treat her as such."

"Yes, sir." When I didn't say anything further, he said, "Can I go now? We were going to play some exploding snap."

"Sure, go ahead." As he got up, I said "One thing… make sure to keep the door open, ok?"

A few minutes later, I heard him laughing and my daughter giggling. After a little bit, there was some deeper laughter as the twins found their way up. Kids… for a bit more, but probably not as long as I hoped.

As I lay next to Molly that night, she asked me, "How did things go with Harry?"

"Pretty good. I think he may need some better advice than I can give regarding wealth management when he grows up, but he wasn't that impressed by it."

"Probably a good thing."

"The other part of the talk I was going to have… was a bit more interesting. Harry said he knew the basics but seemed a bit nervous to ask anything."

"Because he likes Ginny."

I was more than perplexed. "Did he tell you?"

"No, just a witch's intuition. And Ginny isn't speechless in front of the poor boy anymore, but she still has a crush on him."

"That I guessed. I told him not to worry about it, but to take things slow but we wouldn't stop them when they were older."

"You know older may be sooner rather than later."

I was trying to not consider that. "He's only going to be thirteen."

Molly kissed my lips softly. "And I remember a fifteen year old that was mooning over me for at least a couple years before he finally gave me a proper kiss. The kids are older than you want them to be. Ginny's grown up much more, between last year and just having so many older brothers. And she ended up being an earlier bloomer than I was."

That had been the source of some excitement for my wife a few weeks ago. I was just thankful that Molly was around to take care of her and I was glad that we had so many boys.

She continued, "You did good, dear. They will be all right."

"I love you."

"I love you too, Arthur. Always."

 ***Ginny***

Ron, Harry, and the twins were outside degnoming while I was stuck in the kitchen sweeping after supper. I didn't mind it so much this time though. I made sure Mum and I were alone. "I started again, this morning."

Mum nodded. "It may be irregular for a while. There's nothing to worry about. Do you need to lie down?"

"Maybe in a bit." I paused. "Harry's birthday is tomorrow. I know his past ones have been rubbish and want to make it special."

"We will. I was going to have you help with a cake later, if you feel up to the task."

"I just… I want to get him something but I'm not sure and I don't have any money. And he has more than he could spend so why would he want something from me?"

"Ginny, dear… try not to get too upset." I didn't even realize I was crying. "He cares about your friendship, not anything you can it can't buy for him. I'm sure you will think of something."

I thought about it for a few minutes and then an idea popped in my head. I felt like a girl inspired. After supper, I asked Dad to meet me in his shed. He was surprised; us kids hardly ever volunteered to go out there.

"What did you want, princess?"

I rolled my eyes. I thought that we were passed that. "I wanted to make something for Harry's birthday tomorrow." I explained to him what I wanted.

He went to a pile of wood in the back and fished out a piece. "Here's a slab of white oak that I had saved from a project, I think it will work well." He handed me a piece of wood and a scrap of sandpaper. "You'll want to make it smooth first."

I nodded and got to work. After a few minutes, the front side was almost silky to the touch. "Done, Dad."

"Ok… now, you aren't technically supposed to do this but I'm right here, so it's ok. And you can use my wand. We'll have to get you a new one before school starts."

He showed me the incantation and has me practice on few scraps until I was ready. I took a deep breath, steadied my hand, and burned into the piece of oak.

Finally, I was finished. "Do you think he will like this?"

"I'm sure he will, dear. You can keep it out here until tomorrow. You ought to get ready for bed now dear."

"Yes, Dad." I gave him a hug and kissed his cheek.

"Thanks for helping," I said and ran up to my room.

The next day, Harry's birthday, was a Saturday, so Dad and Percy were home the entire day. It was a scorcher, so after breakfast all the boys went out for a swim after my mum put on the charm to protect against sunburn. Sometimes I wished I could have a nice tan, but with my skin, no luck. It was either cream with auburn freckles or burned bright lobster red, which Mum warned would give me wrinkles as an adult. So, I lived with the strongest charm she could perform. It made sunbathing rather pointless, but I said I would come down before realizing I couldn't swim today. Instead, I spread out on a blanket in a pair of shorts and a lime string tank top that my parents didn't know I had.

At one point, Harry looked like he was going to ask me something, but Fred whispered something in his ear, which made him shy for a minute. After a while, he got over it and glanced back at me every so often.

We were all too excited to wait, so after we got back home and we ate the sandwiches Mum made for lunch, we convinced Harry to open up his gifts. He grinned and said, "This is probably the best birthday I've had in… well, since my first one."

He opened Dad and Mum's gift first. To anyone outside our family, it would have seemed to be an odd gift, a clock hand that had his name in fancy script next to a painted snitch. But he knew instantly what it meant.

"Here, Harry," Dad said. "Allow me." Dad got out his wand and levitated the hand into place on the giant clock overlooking the table. He flicked his wrist and it stuck firm on the clock, the hand turning green as it activated. It whirled for a moment and then pointed dead-center at "home" along with all our red clock hands but my two oldest brothers.

"Thanks… that's really…" He gave both my parents a hug.

Ron handed him a box wrapped in brown paper, tied with some twine. "Here you go, Harry. The four of us chipped in together on this."

He untied the knot and then ripped off the paper. It was a professional-grade broom servicing kit for his Nimbus 2000. "Thanks, guys."

Fred said, "We want to make sure our star seeker looks good up there."

"And with any luck, the sun'll catch the handle just perfectly and blind that arse Malfoy."

"Boys!" Mum scolded.

Harry laughed and said, "Well, thanks. We will do what we can. Oliver's going to be unbearable this year."

Ron said, "Well, at least, he won't be able to get on you for your broom not being tip-top."

I was jealous. I looked at the box and remembered seeing Harry darting across the sky. I really did hope to be a reserve chaser but the house brooms were several years old. As beaters, it didn't seem to hurt Fred and George much, but they had a lot more practice than me too.

Dad coughed, bringing me back to reality. "Ginny, how about you give Harry your gift."

"Oh, right." I could feel the blood go to my face instantly. I thought I had gotten over being embarrassed around him. "It's outside still… be right back." I scampered off to Dad's shed and realized I hadn't wrapped the gift yet. Too late now.

"I hope you like this."

I handed him the plank I had tried shaping it into an oval, about eighteen inches long and eight inches high. The writing with the wand wasn't perfect, but I had burned into it simply "Harry's Room."

"I couldn't decide what to get you, so I thought something handmade might be nice. Plus, this way if Luna or Hermione come over they'll know which room at the top of the stairs is yours and mine. Dad helped me with the wand work. It's not charmed or anything special." You can shut up now, Ginny. When did I start blabbering?

Harry had a huge smile on his face and hugged me tightly. "It's perfect, thanks." He let me go a little sooner than I want. "I feel… really special. All of you, thanks again."

"And now you're going to feel full, Harry!" Mum called out from the kitchen. She brought out the enormous cake that we had worked on yesterday. Chocolate with some of the year's first strawberries on top.

Mum cut into it and served out huge pieces to everyone, starting with Harry, who looked like he had never seen a bigger piece of cake in his life.

"This is really good, Mrs. Weasley."

"Thanks. I do my best. Ginny helped a lot too." She looked over and I swore she winked.

"Then thanks to you too, Ginny."

I grinned and dug into my own piece, trying to get out a "You're welcome" between bites. One thing about going through my "flowering time" as my mother put it — I really wanted chocolate.

In the afternoon, we took turns flying. Harry even let me on his broom for a while. It was almost as good as swimming as a way to keep cool. Before bed, Dad had used a sticking charm to put the sign I made for Harry on his door.

I had just finished my bath and was walking up to my room in my bathrobe. Harry ran a finger along the top of his sign and then turned as he heard me coming up the creaky stairs. "Going to bed?"

"Yeah… I'm a bit tired with… well, you probably figured it out."

"Oh… well, good-night Gin."

"Good-night, Harry."

For the next ten days, Harry got to be two years older than me on paper instead of one. I was just ready to put year eleven into the books, as Bill would have said. But first, we got our Hogwarts letters, a little earlier than last year.

Percy made Head Boy, to the delight of Mum and Dad and the horror of the twins. "We'll have to work twice as hard to balance you out!" Fred and George said. I half-believed them.

On the morning of Friday, August sixth, Harry, Ron, and I got identical lists. I didn't have much of an opinion on electives, so I decided to take the same classes as they did. That way, we could help each other study. We didn't have rubbish books from Lockhart this year, but the book for Magical Care of Creatures looked… interesting. We didn't have anything planned for the weekend, so we decided to all go to Diagon Alley on Saturday to go shopping. Mum didn't want to try to handle all six of us by herself.

After breakfast, we all got dressed in clothes that were nicer than we normally wore around the house on a Saturday at my mother's insistence. Dad told Harry, "I went to Gringotts after work yesterday and I got some coin out for you as well as some cheques in case you need to use them while at school. Do you want me to hold onto them?"

He said, "Thanks, but I think I need to learn how to handle them." Dad nodded and handed him a coin purse and a small packet of paper.

After that, we all took turns using the floo to travel. First job for both Ron and I was getting new wands. Ollivander could be quite a while if we proved to be interesting, so Mum took us while Dad split off with Harry and the twins. Percy was of-age and insisted that he could be off by himself.

A new wand, ash with a griffin feather, found its way to Ron in under two minutes. After ten, I was beginning to get impatient.

Finally, Ollivander found one way in the back, and said, "This wand is, well, old. I made it twenty years ago but never found someone it liked." He placed it in my hand and I felt a warmth that started in my palm and journeyed to my core. Nothing like my hand-me-down that now belonged to a murdering dirty man. "I think it was waiting for someone special."

He looked at me and smiled gently. "Dragon heartstring, for a fiercely strong young lady, and holly, from the same tree as belongs to a young gentlemen that I believe you know. His wand, I would not wish that fate on anyone. I fear for what it will need to do for its master."

I was half-puzzled by his comment. I kind of knew what he meant, but I didn't want to think too much about it. I worried enough about this next year already… who else would almost die this year?

We bumped into the rest of my family on our way out of the shop. Dad looked like he wanted to be happy but was trying not to be and the twins were grinning. Harry had a confident look on his face. Mum demanded, "Where have you been?"

"Dear, it's a bit of a secret. Nothing to worry about." She wasn't happy with that answer and I thought dad was going to have to make up for that later.

"Well, if you lot can take Ron and go get everyone's books, I need to take Ginny clothes shopping…" That made them scatter pretty quickly.

My mother found a couple decent used robes for me. I hadn't grown much over the last year, but I had ruined a couple with feathers and rooster blood. I was glad she didn't try to repair those, the memories would have been too much. She then swung over to another part of the store I hadn't been in yet. "You should get used to wearing these, dear," she said as she handed me a set of underclothes that were not quite what I was used to.

"Mum…"

"These should work for this next year. But if you take after me at all, you may need the real thing sooner than expected. When you come home at Christmas, we'll see how things are going." She put six sets into her basket. "You know to be careful around boys… I'm still not sure about you going up a grade. Thirteen and fourteen year old boys are going to start being interested in… well, just be careful and make sure that they keep their hands to themselves."

This wasn't exactly the place I wanted to have this conversation, but I had been around Harry and Ron so much, I couldn't blame her for not finding a better time. "Yes, Mum. I can take care of myself."

"Tell your brothers if you need help."

"Ok." I leaned into her to let her know I wasn't upset, but it was a bit of awkward silence on the way back. Luckily, no one asked me what I had gotten.

A few days later, it was finally my birthday!

Good-bye horrible eleventh year… well, mostly horrible at least. Hello being twelve. It was a Wednesday, so we were saving the celebration for tonight when Dad was home. So it was a normal summer day, except that I think the boys all let me off easy in our epic game of hide and seek.

Mum made spag bol, my favorite. I did get some teasing about still being the youngest, but then I told Dad I was only a couple years from when he and Mum started dating, which quieted everyone up a bit. We had ice cream for dessert (I never cared for cake that much) and then it was time for presents.

My parents went first, especially since I knew what it was. It was a small container with pink paper that I ripped through. Mum said, "I remembered what I promised." It was a small compact that also came with some eyeshadow and lip gloss. I had asked to wear some last summer to an event at the ministry we all had to go to, and was told I had to wait until twelve. She continued, "Just for special occasions."

"Yes, Mum. Thank you!" I had only planned on doing that anyway. I didn't really want to be that girly — I was too active that sweat would ruin it after a few hours anyway. It was more about being grown up. And I was so ready to not be a little girl anymore.

Fred handed me a slightly larger box. Harry spoke up, "She should do mine first, it'll ruin the surprise."

George shook his head. "Harry, you and Ron both need to learn the art of cultivating anticipation."

He finally nodded and I was handed my gift after being a bit confused. "Ginny, this is from the four of us."

Ron looked at him. "It is?"

I heard a whisper that sounded like, "You owe us a galleon."

I opened it curiously. It was a broom servicing kit. That was a little weird, unless. Did Harry actually get me my own used broom? "Thanks, guys. I… I guess I'll need to open Harry's gift before this makes sense." Was it a Cleansweep like the school brooms or maybe even a Nimbus from last year?

Harry sheepishly smiled and said, "I thought you could use this." He handed me a package that was obviously a broom.

I slowly unwrapped my gift from the tail end. I didn't recognize the design at first, but it was more stylized than even a Nimbus. I thought I recognized it from a magazine, but he couldn't have….

"A Firebolt! Harry, thank you, thank you." I almost ripped his shoulder off grabbing him for a hug.

"Blimey," Ron said, "that's the new model, it must have cost..." but I shut him up with a glare.

Mum spoke up, "Harry, I know you mean well, but that really is too much."

My heart sank, but Harry was prepared. "Yes, Mrs. Weasley, it was an expensive gift. But Ginny wants to be a reserve Chaser and I'm sure she'll make the regular squad year after next. The beaters they have for Slytherin are a set of goons and Malfoy's father bought the entire team new brooms last year. This way, she can outrun them."

Dad said, "He did ask me beforehand, dear and I said it was ok, just this once."

Mum gave Dad a look that said volumes, but she finally said, "All right. Just make sure you don't go too fast Ginny."

I nodded… her definition of too fast and mine were likely different though. "We still have some daytime left. Can I go try this out?"

She nodded. "Race around the paddock?" anyone. All the boys but Percy were up for the challenge. It was a good day.


	3. Year 3, Part 3

***Ginny***

The summer was finally over. Boarding the Hogwarts Express was even more tearful than last year. Mum was so worried that I was honestly beginning to be afraid she was going to make me stay behind. We all promised to be careful and look out for each other and we said one last goodbye and then the six of us got on.

By that time, most of the berths were half full. Percy had to go with the prefects and the twins found seats with the Gryffindor chasers, Angelina, Katie, and Alicia. Finally, we found one set that had only two other occupants, Hermione and an adult.

"Hi Harry, Ron, Ginny," she said. "How was your summer?" she asked as Ron sat next to the presumed professor. I sat next to Hermione and Harry took the window seat on my left.

"It was great!" said Harry. "Almost could have used a few more weeks."

Hermione looked really confused. "The Dursley's change into completely new people?"

Now it was my turn to look stunned. "Neither of you told her…?"

Harry and Ron both looked down at their feet. "Boys can be such idiots." I had assumed Harry would have written her and she wasn't really my friend… "Harry's living with us now. Dad had Harry's horrid relatives sign over guardianship."

Hermione smiled and said, "That's wonderful! So, they adopted you?"

She always picked up the obscure details. Harry said, "No, just custody. Mr. Weasley asked me, but explained that it would dissolve the Potter family if I did, meaning I would lose the family Wizengamot seat. There's some other… complicated reasons too."

"Anything else you two left out?"

I said, "I moved up to your year… at least one positive from what happened to me, I was able to take the second year tests and pass."

Ron added, "My rat Scabbers turned out to be a man named Peter Pettigrew, the bloke who really…" Ron looked at Harry, uncomfortable.

"He led Voldemort to my mum and dad," Harry finished.

"Well," Hermione said, "I didn't have quite all that excitement. I did read through all our textbooks a couple times, except for the Creatures one. So it was pretty fun. You guys could have had me over though."

I could tell she was a little hurt. "I'm sorry," said Harry. Ron seconded it. I promised to keep them both in line.

"So who am I sitting next to?" asked Ron.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Professor R. Lupin, according to his case."

The snack trolley came by and Harry bought us all our favorite. We all caught up for most of the trip. I was glad Hermione was including me.

I had been nervous, but she must have been glad to have a girl to talk to. Through it all, the professor stayed asleep; he must have had a rough night.

Suddenly, I heard a faint scream. Lupin finally woke up. He stood up and said, "Excuse me, I'll go see what's going on."

As he opened the door, he almost collided into Fred and George with their wands drawn. Fred said, "You lot ok?"

Harry already had his wand out too. George looked at us over Lupin's shoulder, adding, "Angelina saw a rat. We wanted to make sure you were ok."

Lupin's face got even paler. "You're one of the Weasleys... Dumbledore warned me about your pet." He quickly brought Fred and George into our berth and said, "I'll take a look, you stay here." They nodded and sat down next to Ron.

I grabbed Harry's hand, nervous. "I hate this…" I muttered.

Ron said, "Yeah, having to panic every time someone thinks they see a rat. It's going to get old."

Five minutes later, the door opened and there stood Peter pointing my wand at my brothers. "Quickly!" he yelled, blasting out the train window. Thankfully, most of the glass was blown outward. "You don't want to try that!" he screamed as George reached for his wand.

Peter kept moving his wand between all of us. "Up, you two!" he ordered me and Harry. "Now!"

I heard Lupin yell in the distance, "Peter! Stop it!" He responded by blowing a sizeable chunk out of the flooring.

"I'm quite out of practice, Remus. Stay there or I'm going to start taking this car apart, piece by piece, and someone may get hurt."

"Get up, you two!" He yelled louder this time and when I wasn't standing up, he dug his nails into my arm and forced me to my feet.

Harry lunged at him but he held him off. Peter dug tighter into my arm and grinned. He stepped behind me to my left and said, "Harry, I think the Dark Lord will want both of you healthy. He's already possessed her once, he should be able to again… but don't try my patience." He sniffed my hair and then said, "She may have some other uses, in time…"

He forced me to sidestep with him. Another step or two and he could force us off the train.

Suddenly, a flash of purple streaked towards me and my arm was free. I turned around and there was the rat. My old wand was being carried in its mouth.

Ron dove to the ground, trying to catch him, but it was too late. Peter jumped out of the moving train and was lost to us once again.

Harry gently touched my arm. "Are you all right?" I nodded.

Hermione looked satisfied and said, "I thought that spell might turn out useful."

Professor Lupin was at the door. "He's gone, Professor," Harry volunteered, staring out the side of the train. "He tried to take Ginny and me, but Hermione forced him back to being a rat and he jumped." He sounded both relieved and disappointed as he turned around.

Lupin looked surprised when he had his first chance to see Harry. "Merlin… you're Harry Potter."

"Yes, sir. I get that a lot."

"You look just like your father. We were friends."

Harry nodded, "Dumbledore told me a bit about you and Peter and Sirius."

Fred and George got up. "We're going to go back, make sure the girls are ok."

"Thanks for watching out for us," I said.

Lupin said, "I should check with the prefects, make sure everyone else is ok. I'll see you all later."

It was just the four of us then. I hugged Hermione and said, "Thanks for saving us. I don't… he would have hurt us."

Hermione smiled and patted me on the head. "Anytime."

Harry had sat down next to Ron and we just sat in silence for the rest of the trip, wondering what was happening next.

Nothing too interesting happened during the feast. I slowly walked where last year's roommate were seated. I got a couple casual greetings, but they didn't make a seat for me. So I continued in and sat next to Ron.

Afterwards, all us Gryffindors followed Percy to our corner of the castle. Hermione and I said goodnight to the boys and then headed up to the girls' dormitory.

I heard a voice coming up from the next level, "Yes, your trunk was already sent up here! I told you it would have been." First years.

I made it to the next level, where I should have been sleeping and walked by. Finally, we were at the third level. Hermione went in first and I followed.

There were four beds in a close circle. The two furthest from the door were occupied by a skinny dark-haired girl who looked Indian and a fair blonde who had no business being as developed as she was for a third-year. "Hi," said Hermione. She must have realized I was a bit lost. "Ginny, this is Parvati Patil and Lavender Brown. Parvati, Lavender, Ginny is Ron's younger sister if you didn't meet last year. She's skipping her second year."

Lavender was reading "Teen Witch Weekly" but glanced up and said, "Nice to meet you Ginny."

Parvati smiled and said, "Same here. Good job on skipping a grade. One less year you have to have Snape."

Snape had always been so unfair to most Gryffindors and from what Harry said, he treated him right awful. But for some reason, he had never been horrid to me. I'd never be his favorite student, but he didn't go out of his way to make me miserable.

Hermione then asked, "Where's Anne and Stephanie?"

Parvati said, "I'm not sure, but their dad took them out around the time you were petrified last year; their mum's a muggle. I guess they aren't coming back since there's just the four beds."

Hermione shrugged. I guess she was trying to not make me feel bad if they were missing out on the rest of Hogwarts because of me… because of him. I kept forcing myself to remember who was to blame. "Well," she finally responded, "I guess my trunk's over here next to Lavender."

I nodded and went to the bed on the left. I opened it up and quickly put away my robes and organized my books and quills. I took out my most prized possession, currently shrunk inside a bag about the size of a breadbox. I reached inside and pulled out my Firebolt and lovingly placed it under my bed where it wouldn't be in danger of knocking it over.

Lavender's eyes flicked to it for a moment, "Wait, is that a brand new broom? It looks almost shiney."

I smiled, "Yeah, it was a birthday present. I hope I can be on the reserve team this year. I couldn't bear to leave it home."

Parvati said, "My mum would never buy me something sportsey, even if I had asked."

Hermione caught a better glance. "Wait, that's a Firebolt! Ron was obsessed with ads for them all last spring, that's professional level…"

"It was from a friend." I glared at Hermione. She knew the only person I knew with that sort of money, and I didn't think he wanted it advertised.

I laid back in my bed and wrote Mum a quick letter. I had promised I would let her know I was safe. I wrote a quick note and told myself to remember to ask ask Harry if I could borrow Hedwig — I'm sure she would send some sweets back with her. After that, I fell fast asleep.

Luckily, my nightmares weren't every night anymore and I hoped that I wouldn't wake up the other girls much. At breakfast, Hermione brought up something interesting. "So, with Ginny around, we're a bit more evened up." She looked at me and explained, "These two are always competing who gets to be by partner for Potions. Though sometimes, I'm tempted to go with Neville and make them fend for themselves."

My brother put out his most innocent look towards her and said, "You wouldn't really do that to us, would you, 'Mione?"

Hermione shook her head. "Boys… Anyway, who do you want, Ginny?"

I tried thinking up reasons. "Well, Professor Snape's always been less horrid to me, so I think if I'm with Harry, maybe it'll even things out?"

Harry said, "Gin, if you can do that, I will be amazed."

I shouldn't have been so optimistic. Harry and I had barely found a seat when Snape walked in, his hair as black and greasy as ever, his eyes sunk deep in his face. We were with the Slytherins, which never helped. "I hope all of you had a… restful summer. You are almost halfway to your NEWTs and I will stop being so tolerant of shoddy results."

We were assigned a calming draught with at least twice the number of ingredients as anything I remembered from last year. We were working really hard but Snape was glaring at us almost constantly. It bothered me a bit but Harry could barely think.

With five minutes to spare, our potion had changed the correct color of tangerine. Snape immediately approached our table and carefully inspected it. He said, "Passable, Potter. But if you think Lil…. Little Miss Weasley is going to do your work for you…"

He stood back and said, "Starting next lesson, everyone will be working solitary until further notice." We all knew better to groan in front of him.

On the way out, Snape wouldn't even look me in the eye. I guess he had decided I wasn't anything special.

At least Care for Magical Creatures went better. Mr. Hagrid had become the new professor. Harry, Hermione, and Ron were all really excited. Harry in particular, he had a personal relationship with him. I was not looking forward to it. The only time I had been out to his cabin was to strangle some birds.

He started off with a Hippogriff, which he explained was quite a vain creature. Harry volunteered to approach the animal named Buckbeak, more for Hagrid's sake than anything, and he was quickly off on a tour of the ground on top of its back. I stayed in the rear of the class and was very quiet, hoping to stay out of trouble.

Unfortunately, Draco must have been annoyed that there was something more vain than him in the class. While Hagrid had his back turned, he walked towards Buckbeak and taunted it. I was quite done with the Malfoys and their big mouths. I yelled, "Shut up!" as loud as I could.

Draco glared at me and smirked. "What, you don't like me calling him a dumb beast? That thing is the smelliest, ugliest….OOF!"

Hermione had tackled him a split-second before Buckbeak took off his head. "Get off me, you filthy mudblood!"

"Fine, next time I'll let you get impaled. Idiot."

Hagrid was over. "Draco, I jus' told you how to treat Buckbeak an' you did the exact opposite. We'll be workin' with Buckbeak tomorrow, but you'll be cleaning out his stall. If you can't listen to me, then I'll give you a zero and you can be done with the course for the term." Draco scowled. "Now, get."

After the class was over, the four of us stayed around for a few minutes. Hagrid looked worried. "I should na' have done that. Dumbledore'll be hearin' from Malfoy, I'm sure."

Ron spoke up, "Hagrid, he deserved that... what he really would have deserved would be letting Buckbeak take out a few chunks."

Hermione said, "Ron, I just did that so Buckbeak wouldn't get into trouble. I didn't relish grabbing Malfoy." She paused and said, "Err, maybe try to start with something a bit...safer, Hagrid?"

Hagrid didn't look like that seemed like a lot of fun. "Well, you all need to be off for your next class." He shooed them off but I stayed. There was something I felt I needed to do.

"Professor?"

"Please, just Hagrid, please. I'll ne'er feel like a real professor."

"I… I'm sorry about your roosters. I can't afford to pay for them, but maybe I can do some work for you…" I felt a tear running down my face.

He interrupted me gently, shaking his head. Putting a hand on my shoulder, he said "Ginny, t'wasn't yer fault. He almost ruined me life too." He beckoned me into his hut. "Looks like you need a cuppa."

Relieved, I nodded and sat down in his guest chair and looked around the sparse room. Nothing fancy and nothing Malfoy would approve of, but Harry's stories of Hagrid made him seem to be a truly genuine and honest man.

Hagrid handed me a stained white cup with a chip. He said softly, "You-Know-Who… he hurt me too. He got me expelled, blamed one of me pets on the girl who died. If it wasn't for Dumbledore, great man, I would've been on the streets, my dad already gone and me mum not around. I'm just' glad yer safe and tha' yer family is takin' care of Harry. You two are worth a lot more than some mangy birds. And your family is more precious than stones."

I nodded. "Thank-you."

"Now get along, your friends will be waitin' on ya." I nodded, dried the start of a tear, and scurried off after the rest of my group.

 ***Arthur***

All five..six of my kids at Hogwarts seemed to have done well the first couple months. The twins had only received four detentions each so far, so it was a slow start for them. Or they had gotten better at not getting caught.

Ginny had sent us three letters, which none of the other kids ever had. I knew it was more for her mother's state of mind than anything, but it was nice hearing from her.

Her latest one made me smile:

Dad, Mum,

Mainly good news this time. Professor Snape finally let us work with partners again and he seems to be doing his best to not single me or Harry out anymore. I'm having a little trouble in Transfiguration, but McGonagall offered to spend a little time on Saturdays helping me practice. She also is making sure I'm doing ok, she feels bad about last year.

This Saturday I'll have to skip though. Because I'm playing Quidditch! I easily made the reserves, but then Alicia, one of the Chasers, dropped off. She said between her boyfriend, other clubs, and homework, she had to drop something. Wood tried talking her out, but she said that I'd do ok. I can't imagine choosing a silly boy over Quidditch. We are playing Slytherin so I'll make sure to show them what for, as dad would say.

Harry and Ron say hi.

Love, Ginny

My concentration was soon broken when the auror Kingsley came in. "Arthur, the hearing is about to begin." Sirius Black was finally getting the trial he deserved after twelve horrible years in Azkaban.

I found an empty seat in the observation area. Harry wanted to be here, but underaged wizards were usually not allowed and I was concerned how he would take it if something cocked this up. Fudge had delayed this so long already and Barty Crouch was trying to spend whatever favors he had to bury this and save what little accolades from the end of the last war he still had.

Sirius was brought in, disheveled, far too skinny, in a ragged robe and manacles. Dumbledore had found time to represent him, the least he could have done after what this mistake had put Harry through. Crouch was prosecuting and quickly began.

"Witches and wizards of the Wizengamot, I will not waste your precious time. Through a clerical error, the accused, Sirius Black, did not get a full trial and we are here to rectify that. Mr. Black is accused of leading He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named to the home of his supposed friends James and Lily Potter, where he killed them and then attempted to kill their son Harry. When he was confronted by Peter Pettigrew, he killed him and nineteen muggles. We have the memories of one muggle survivor, who was of course obliviated after the incident. And we have the previous testimony from Albus Dumbledore, who had believed Mr. Black was acting as Secret-Keeper to the Potters and as such was the only one who could have led anyone to them. I ask that you vote to affirm the current conviction of one count of accomplice to murder, one count of accomplice to attempted murder, one count of murder of a wizard, and nineteen counts of muggle murder, each of which carry a mandatory lifetime sentence in Azkaban."

After that speech and looking at Sirius in his pitiful condition, I was ready to believe everything old Barty had said about him. Luckily, Dumbledore wasn't Dumbledore for nothing. He began quietly.

"We were all terrified late in 1980. No one knew when the killings would stop or if Voldemort" (gasps from the Wizengamot at that) "would ever be defeated. Then, suddenly, it was over. Or was it? Some of us felt that it was too good, too easy to be over. We all wanted to forget the war but without punishment for the leader, we couldn't. Many of his supposed helpers escaped conviction with claims of being imperiused. And then we had Sirius. Accused of betraying his best friend and godson. We couldn't stand to even think of that. And so we tossed him into Azkaban without a second moment's thought.

"I too was guilty of wanting life to return to normal too quickly and it caused grave harm to innocents who did not deserve it. Sirius was one of them."

Dumbledore glanced at me, an unspoken apology for last May. He paused and then said, "I would direct your attention to my statement from November 1980. You would do well to note that it was neither a sworn statement nor admissible as it was only a third-hand report of what Mr. James Potter had told me of his plans. He never made a legal declaration to me that Mr. Black was actually made the Secret-Keeper."

"I also have the memories of Ronald Weasley and Harry Potter who saw Peter Pettigrew, long thought dead, in the home of Arthur Weasley last August."

Crouch interrupted, "I for one have difficulty believing in a tale of a dead man appearing in Arthur's house at only the word of two thirteen year olds."

Another wizard, about Crouch's age, responded with indignation. "I've known plenty more adults that are liars than kids. Besides, why would Harry Potter make up a story to spring a man if he thought he killed his parents?"

Crouch insisted, "He could have been confunded by someone."

The same man said, "Really? You think the boy that You-Know-Who couldn't kill was randomly confunded by a mystery man with no motive. Barty, your judgement's been known to be suspect but now I fear for your overall health."

Dumbledore tried to get back on topic. "I believe it is quite straightforward to see what really happened. Peter Pettigrew was the Secret-Keeper, not Sirius. He is responsible for the death of the Potters, the muggles, and framing Sirius Black. He disappeared after faking his death. There is no shame in admitting to having been tricked, only in not fixing our mistake."

There was another half an hour of questions, specifics from the memories. Much of it was personal attacks on Crouch, who had not been popular for a long time. Malfoy was strangely silent, but it made some odd sense. He hated Crouch and had to be loving him being raked all afternoon. However, he surely didn't want anyone looking into anything related to the war.

Finally, there was a vote. Several pure-bloods families including Malfoy abstained. Almost everyone else voted for acquittal, though if it was for Sirius or to slap at Crouch, I didn't know. I guessed it didn't matter. Either way, he was a free man.

Sirius grinned wider than I had ever seen a man. I could see several teeth that needed some immediate work. Healers were in short supply in Azkaban. Kingsley stepped forward. "Given the results of this hearing, I'm issuing a warrant for the capture of Peter Pettigrew, so that this body can properly learn what transpired that night."

A round of agreeing shouts filled the air. Suddenly, silent Lucius Malfoy stood up. "It is also obvious to me that poor Harry Potter may be in danger until this Pettigrew is caught, as well as all our children. I move to send a contingent of Dementors to Hogwarts to watch for the fugitive."

Dumbledore angrily responded, "Absolutely not! Dementors are vile, dangerous creatures, who have no place at a school!"

"Nonsense," said Lucius backhandedly. "After the stories I have heard last year, it is quite obvious you need all the help you can get to secure our children's safety."

The slight at Dumbledore was obvious and expected. I had no doubt Lucius didn't care one scrap about any children except his own precious Draco. However, all of Lucius' usual allies had been paid well and immediately agreed. It was too hard to vote down the measure. Dementors were coming to Hogwarts.

But there were more immediate issues, I realized, as the room quickly emptied. Sirius sat in a chair, his hands freed, with probably no idea what to do with his life. Dumbledore and I were the only other ones left. Then Sirius began weeping.

"Merlin…. James, Lily… Peter, that bastard…" He looked at Dumbledore and said, "I'm almost an old man now. I've lost a third of my life. And Harry! You sure he is well?"

Dumbledore said, "He is, in no small part thanks to Arthur Weasley here." I walked up to them and extended my hand, which Sirius vigorously squeezed.

"As Dumbledore probably told you, my wife Molly and I have permanent guardianship of Harry. He was treated horribly by his mother's sister. We have a house full of kids so one more was no burden and my youngest two, Ron and Ginny, are close friends."

"I'd love to see him. And them."

Dumbledore broke in, saying, "If my aging memory serves me still, Gryffindor and Slytherin have their match this Saturday. Harry's the Seeker and half of the remaining team is comprised of Weasleys. Given all that has happened, no one will begrudge you two and Molly coming as my guests. That will give you a few days, Sirius, if you want to buy some newer clothes and clean up prior to meeting your godson."

Sirius clasped his hands. "Excellent. Arthur, if you have a few minutes, I'd like to hear more about Harry over lunch, if you would do me the honor. Least I can do. I'll just have to make a quick stop at Gringotts. And these rags are probably not the latest fashion."

I nodded, "Yes, probably correct." I had seen some muggle children walk around with purposely ripped pants, which was incomprehensible to me and definitely not proper for someone of Black's position. "Harry's like a son to me and so we're family, after a fashion. You shouldn't be tossed in the street all by yourself. We can talk over lunch and I can catch you up."

Dumbledore nodded. "I will let your children know what has happened today and your plans for the weekend. I'll have a Floo connection set up to my office from the Burrow and Grimmauld place, I assume that's where you'll be staying?"

"For now. Probably not longer than I have to."

Dumbledore nodded and tapped a sock he must have been using as a portkey because in an instant, he was gone.

I turned and Sirius and I left the Ministry as fast as possible. He wanted his first breath of free air. And I had a lot to tell him.

Ginny*

"You should eat something."

"But not too much either, sis."

"I suggest one piece of toast."

"With nothing on it."

"Maybe a little butter."

"Definitely not marmalade."

"Nothing orange is ever lucky when it comes to Quidditch." Fred winked at Ron with that last quip. Ron scowled back.

"Thanks." I followed their advice and munched on a piece of bread. "I'm not really nervous. After all, it's your job to make sure I don't have to worry about anything, right?"

George smiled and said, "Exactly. At least until Harry comes up with the Snitch."

Harry shrugged. "We'll be fine."

To be honest with myself, I was a little nervous. The Slytherin/Gryffindor game was usually the most competitive except for the last few games if the cup was still in play. More so with Draco playing Harry's opposite. I couldn't think of him without thinking of his father and what he had done to me. Harry seemed a little distracted with the news his godfather was coming along with my parents. I hoped that he would live up to Harry's dreams.

Finally, it was match time. Angelina helped make sure my jersey was in order in our lockers. She and Katie had been helping me a lot. When I was up in the air during practice, nothing from last year mattered. We trudged out and met the boys. Wood took the lead, then my brothers, then we three Chasers, followed by Harry last. We had jeers from the Slytherins and cheers from most everyone else. Wood gave us a last-minute talk while the Slytherins assembled.

"Fred, George, do your thing."

"Harry, try to keep the game going if we're doing well. I'd like to start the season with a good lead."

"Angelina, Katie, Ginny… let's get some fast scores. Ginny, I know you're ready to surprise those snakes."

"Definitely." We had successfully kept my birthday present a secret.

Madam Hooch called us together. I was opposite one of the three Slytherin Chasers. They were all older students that I didn't know, so I mentally nicknamed them Ugly, Uglier, and Smelly. Smelly glared at me as the Snitch was released. Hooch then let go of the Bludgers and then finally tossed the Quaffle into the air.

Uglier ended up with it but then Katie came in and popped the Quaffle out with a fist. Angelina was there to catch it. Immediately, Ugly and Smelly came at her from each side, aiming to trap her with a pincer move.

Suddenly the Quaffle flew my direction as she realized I was uncovered. I almost dropped it, I was so excited. I secured the ball in my left arm and urged my broom forward at top speed, trying to get out of the fray.

I risked a quick glance behind. The Chasers and Beaters were all in pursuit but no way were they going to catch up.

A few seconds later, I was coming close to to the goals. The Slytherin Keeper was staring at me while covering the middle hoop. I had to quickly make a decision…

I aimed at the top goal and the Keeper moved between the middle and the top targets, hedging his bets. At the last possible chance. I stalled my broom and dove down, executing as sharp a turn as I dared. The maneuver worked, as I had a clear shot on the bottom ringl and tossed it through. My first goal! The score was 10-0.

The game proceeded from there. Within forty minutes, I had five assists as Katie and Angelina each scored four goals of their own. Slytherin had snuck in six of their own. We were once again on the Slytherin side of the field.

Jordan was announcing the game. "And now the score is ninety to sixty, Gryffindor! Weasley is separating herself from the crowd with that broom of hers, and the skills to use it…. You sure?" he said to someone as an aside. "People, it's been confirmed that's none other than a Firebolt that she's riding! Weasley comes close to getting hit by a bludger but then Weasley and Weasley sent it to the opposite side of the field."

I almost cracked up at the confusing commentary. He could just use our first names, but he'd probably confirm my sneaking suspicion he couldn't keep the twins straight. Didn't help they swapped numbers from one match to another.

Smelly bumped me hard and I dropped the Quaffle. "Damn," I muttered under my breath, chasing after him.

Wood easily blocked the shot, saving the team from my mistake. After another ten minutes of back-and-forth play, I had the Quaffle again and two unwanted balls were headed straight towards me as well, from opposite directions.

I froze for a split-second, unsure of which way to go. Fred and George arrived a moment before the Bludgers and cleared them out. "Go for it!" Fred yelled at me.

I nodded and took off again. That little stunt had put the Slytherins out of position and I was able to score one more goal. Then Jordan yelled, "And Potter is on the chase for the Snitch!" Sure enough, Harry was speeding off towards my side of the field and I saw a glint of light hundreds of feet above me.

And Malfoy, who had thought he had saw something lower, was near ground level at mid-field and had a shorter distance to cover.

I wasn't going to let him steal this win from us. I angled my broom upwards and pressed forward. At the last possible second, I slowed down just enough to put myself in Draco's path. I was ahead of him and has right-of-way so it wouldn't be an interference penalty as we collided in a sideways hit. The crowd went wild ten seconds later as Harry ended the game, two hundred fifty to sixty. I made my way to the ground, knowing I was going to have some deep bruises tomorrow but that it was worth it.

After the game, I changed into muggle clothes for the rest of the day. I gingerly put on a white t-shirt with a few colorful stripes and a pair of dark green jeans. As long as no one bumped into me, it wouldn't hurt.

The boys were waiting for us outside. They were all headed back to Gryffindor Tower while Mum and Dad were waiting for Harry and me in Lupin's classroom. Harry had asked Ron and I to be with him. But then we had a slight delay.

"Weasley!"

The three of us turned around and saw Draco fuming along with his usual muscle Crabbe and Goyle.

Fred said dryly, "You'll have to be a bit more specific."

"Shut up! You — girl. Leave the flying to respectable purebloods that actually know what they're doing." We all turned around, ignoring him, except for Harry who stood his ground. Draco decided to work on getting our attention again.

"I'm surprised they even let you back into the school after your attacks on the mudbloods. And that someone thought it was a good idea to throw away gold on someone like you."

"It was a gift." I'm not sure why I said that.

He paused for a moment, looked at me up and down and then smirked. "Doubtful. Maybe you found some way to earn it. If I had known you were selling, I may have given you a better price, if you made it worth my time."

I grabbed Fred and George's shirts before they went after him. I didn't need them getting in trouble over an idiot. I'd deal with the prat on my own without witnesses. But the twins weren't the ones who I should have worried about.

Harry lunged at Draco, knocking him hard to the ground. Before anyone knew what was happening, Harry was on top, pummeling him with both fists. Crabbe and Goyle tried getting involved, but Harry socked each of them in the gut and went back to rearranging Malfoy's face.

Finally, Wood and my brothers got Harry off the twerp. Draco slowly got up, wiping some blood off his face and glared at Harry. "Potter, you dare…. My father."

Harry returned the glare and spat out, "You can tell your father if he or you hurt Ginny again I'll put both of you in St. Mungo's."

We all stood there for what seemed like hours until Malfoy turned around and slowly slinked away, the rest of his housemates following. Harry turned in my direction and looked at his feet. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have lost my temper."

Wood said, "No one's mad at you, Harry. Just make sure you don't get yourself suspended. Lucky there's no teachers around."

George said, "And we'll get him back if he doesn't stop."

That made Harry smile, but Wood was serious. Harry looked at me and quietly asked, "I can't stand bullies. Especially what his dad did to you last year."

I hugged him tightly. "Thanks, Harry. You didn't have to do that, but I appreciate it."

He returned the hug for a bit and then asked, "Are you ok?"

I nodded, "Let's go see Sirius."

We were in our DADA classroom in about fifteen minutes. I saw my parents, Ron, Professor Lupin and a well-dressed man in a set of new black robes.

Sirius rose immediately when he saw us and rushed over to Harry. He tensed up a little, so Sirius stopped before getting too close. "Merlin, look at you. I'd swear it was James." He took another step back and said, "I'm your godfather Sirius. I'm glad you're looking healthy."

"You too, Mr. Black," he said.

He immediately responded, "That's Sirius to you and your friends. And thanks. It's amazing what a few hundred galleons on a suit and haircut can do, along with a few days of Molly's cooking…. Great game by the way. You too, Ginny."

I smiled and thanked him.

Mum exclaimed, "I'm not sure I can watch another match… both you and Harry fly like you want my heart to stop." She smiled and gave us both hugs. Then she noticed something. "Harry, have you been fighting?"

I just realized he had blood on his knuckles. Mostly not his. Dad piped up. "Harry, what happened?"

Crap. He didn't need to get in trouble. "Malfoy was being a sore loser."

"That doesn't excuse fighting," Mum said.

I had to say something. "Harry was defending me. Draco said the only way I could afford a new broom was by… selling myself."

Dad turned about three shades of red in anger. Lupin said, "I'm going to not give you detention this time, but you need to be the better man, Harry."

Sirius said, "Or don't get caught."

Harry smiled, "I can try to manage that." Then he paused for a moment and asked a little apprehensively, "Am I moving in with Sirius?" My heart skipped a beat.

Sirius shook his head. "James… Harry, I think Arthur and Molly are doing a fine job with you and they still want you there. I'm going to definitely be around and you'll be more than welcome to stay with me sometimes during the summer. But unless you really want to, I think where you are is where you should be."

He looked at us and then responded, "Yeah, I do too."

"Now, between the match and everything, I'm sure you're famished. McGonagall said I could take you into Hogsmeade for supper. I'll have to get back to London afterwards, so it'll be Christmas before I'll have a chance to see you again."

"Ok, sounds good." He turned back to me and said, "See you tomorrow."

"Of course." We both had homework due that we hadn't finished yet. Between practice and everything, we usually ended up spending Sunday afternoons together.

Dad said, "We'll walk you back to the tower. Your mother packed you a beef sandwich and some biscuits."

"Thanks."

"And I'd feel a bit better if you promise me that you won't be in the hallways by yourself." Before I could argue, he said, "I know you can take care of yourself, but if Draco is anything like his father…. I told the same thing to Ron."

"Ok… I promise." We finally reach the tower. "Thanks for coming today."

Mum said, "I'm glad you have that broom…. I'm always going to be your mum, Ginny. Let me know if you need anything."

"I will." I gave them each a hug and then went up to my room.

In a few weeks, it was Halloween. Hermione and I got dressed for the morning and met Harry in the common room. Hermione asked, "Ron coming to breakfast?"

"Yeah, he's still getting ready."

"Any plans for tonight?" she said.

"Well, no party with Sir Nicholas at least… not sure if I want to go to the feast or not."

"I'm not," I said.

Hermione said, "Oh… yes, I understand. I'll see if Ron wants to then."

"Keep me company?" I asked Harry.

"Yeah, I can."

My brother appeared a little later and we went to get some food. Halfway through a sausage, a delivery owl dropped Hermione's copy of "The Daily Prophet." The headline read

A Look Back: 12 Years Since the End of the War

She looked at the front page for a moment but surrendered it to Harry as he wouldn't stop trying to read upside-down. His mood did not improve. "They want to make it a holiday, Victory Day. Celebrating."

He kept reading while I caught most of it over his shoulder. Hermione warned, "Harry, they don't mean to..." He suddenly stood up and stormed out.

Ron asked, "What happened?"

"Page five advertisement. Half price mattresses on Victory Day. Nice way to remember his parents dying," I said. "I'm going to check on him."

"Snape will dock you points if you're tardy…" Hermione warned.

"I'll let you know if I bloody care," I shot back sharply.

I pulled out the map and quickly found Harry heading for Gryffindor Tower. I followed, watching him go to his room, alone. Thankful that the Founders were sexist, I climbed up the boys' stairs and found him sitting in his bed.

"Gin, I'm sorry… I shouldn't…"

I sat next to him. "I'd bring mad too if it was my parents. I think everyone wants to just remember being happy."

He nodded and let me lean into his side. "Not everyone though," I added. "There's a memorial at yours house. Dad took the older three once."

"I'd like to see that."

"I'm sure Sirius could pull you out for the day."

"Not not. Hearing about them from him and Professor Lupin, and with Peter out there… sometime when I'm ready. I'd want you and Ron and Hermione there too."

"I can't speak for them, but I will be there for you. They loved you Harry."

"Thanks. I'm sure they would have liked meeting you too."

"I would have too." We hugged for a bit longer and then got up before Ron sent a search party after us.

 ***Arthur***

After Ginny's first match, the next time we saw the kids was Christmas Break. Harry asked me to take him down to Diagon Alley after I was done with work to do some shopping. He and Ginny hadn't been happy when we cancelled their permission slips for visiting Hogsmeade, but with Peter on the loose and him having singled the two of them out, Molly had insisted. We also didn't need another run-in with Draco. They at least were able to keep each other company those weekends.

I received a notice as I was trying to head out — Dumbledore's stalling was finally at an end and there would be at least a dozen Dementors outside the Hogwarts grounds.

I made my way down to the Leaky Cauldron where Harry soon appeared by floo, tripping as usual. "Know what you're getting everyone?"

"Pretty sure."

"And you'll stay within a reasonable limit?"

"Yes, sir. That was a one-time thing for Ginny anyway. I just wanted to give her something to look forward to at school this year."

Harry ended up buying everyone books. For me, he said it was going to be a beginners' guide to automobile engines. Hermione was buying it and it would be delivered by muggle post to a box that we used for such things. It promised to be fascinating.

Harry bought the most obscure book on charms he could find for the twins. Ron got something about the Chudley Cannons and he bought an OWL prep book for Hermione. Molly was getting a book on continental cooking. She had said she wanted to branch out, so Harry was going to get a curry cookbook, but I thought she didn't mean branching out that much.

Finally, there was my daughter. It took him about fifteen minutes rummaging through a bookstore. He came out with a small book with an emerald-colored embossment. I looked a bit confused.

"She said it was her favorite color."

"No, I was just… is that a diary?"

"Yeah, Ginny said Professor McGonagall had suggested she try one, when she was comfortable. Prove to herself that it was safe, face her fears, that sort of thing." He turned to the clerk. "Ma'am, can you personalize this with a name on the inside of the front cover. Ginny Weasley. G-I-N-N-Y W-E-A-S-L-E-Y. In scarlet" It was an extra galleon, which he paid for in stride.

Christmas ended up being a pretty happy affair. Harry ended up not being the one I needed to worry about extravagant presents. Sirius was very grateful to be out of Azkaban. I also had let slip about the activities at Hogwarts that were planned for next year and so he bought Harry and all my boys the latest dress robes with allowances for a year of growing for the younger ones. He had his cousin Nymphadora help him buy Ginny and Molly both very elegant dresses.

My gift was a secret. Officially, he had insisted on paying to fix the damage Peter had done to the Burrow. But then on Boxing Day he came over to pick up Harry for the week and left an old almost-running Triumph Bonneville motorcycle in my shed. It promised to be an interesting project. Much too soon though, the kids were on their way back to school for the second term. It was almost their last.


	4. Year 3, Part 4

***Ginny***

Professor Lupin had an interesting activity during the last day before Valentine's Day weekend. In this class, it was us with the Hufflepuffs. Lupin started by saying, "So in this wardrobe, I have a boggart. No one knows what they truly look like. Why is that?"

I let Hermione answer. "Professor, it's because a bogart changes their shape to whatever you are afraid of."

"Correct, Miss Granger." He explained to us the charm for dealing with them… thinking of a way to make your worst fear funny. It was all a matter of mental strength, controlling your emotions instead of being controlled by them. Easier said than done.

Neville went first, and the Boggart turned into a good representation if Snape. He then was given Neville's grandmother's hat and blouse.

Ron had a giant spider that quickly was tripping with skates. Hermione's was a Howler that said she had failed all her NEWTs and was expelled. She made the letter turn into a paper aeroplane.

Harry and I ended up being last. Before it was our turn, Lupin stepped in front and a silver orb appeared. It spurted away like a deflating balloon, which made sense for a werewolf. Sirius had told Harry after Christmas the story of his dad and his friends, who were the marauders of my map. After that, he dismissed the class. We were both puzzled so we stayed behind. Ron wasn't curious enough to delay lunch so he and Hermione went ahead.

"Professor," Harry said, "why didn't you let us try? I'm sure we could have done it."

He looked at us with a bit of sadness. "Harry, you and Ginny have unfairly, much worse things in your head than spiders or a moody potions professor. I was concerned that your boggarts would be something that your classmates would not be prepared to see or would be private. If you want, we can try that now."

"I do," I volunteered. "I need to try." Harry nodded in agreement. I added, "I'll go first."

I had so many images flash in front of my eyes, I wasn't sure what was going to appear. I stepped up to the front and Lupin opened the door.

It was Tom Riddle, just as I had last seen him. He smiled at me and I could see it in his eyes… You're all alone. I'm the only one that understands. The only one with the power so you won't be afraid.

I looked at Harry and the professor and knew that he was lying. I said the charm and suddenly he had the red nose of a clown and was juggling. I finally allowed myself to breathe.

Harry took my place and I saw an image of myself on the ground, as white as a corpse and my left arm curled around the diary. He was really shaken… if that's how I had looked in the Chamber, I couldn't imagine him wanting to see me afterwards. Finally, Harry was able to perform the spell and my double got up and did a little jig.

Lupin stepped in and said, "I think that's enough for today." Neither of us disagreed.

The experience was in my head for most the day, but it really wasn't something I wanted to talk about. Practice didn't run too long since we didn't have a match until March and we had a good lead on points. After changing, I was surprised to see just Harry. Usually us and the twins all walked back together. "Fred and George had to get ready for Hogsmeade tomorrow."

I scowled at the reminder about the village. My mother meant well but it was getting annoying. "Well, thanks for waiting."

We started walking. Harry stopped walking and looked like he wanted to talk, but then stopped and kept moving. Half a minute later, he did it again. After the third time, I was getting frustrated. "Out with it already!"

He stopped and let out a breath. "Sorry. Gin, I. You're my best friend. At least as close to me as Ron and Hermione."

"And you are mine too, Harry. Did I do something wrong?" Opening like that wasn't a good way to start a conversation usually.

"No… nothing like that. I just… I really fancy you."

I had to make sure I heard that. "You… fancy me?"

He nodded. "If you don't feel the same way, it's ok, we can just forget it. And I'm only thirteen and a half but you are really pretty and fun and kind to me and… I wanted to say something, before someone else did."

I doubted anyone else had ever thought of me that way. I was shocked he did, of all people. I had been satisfied just being his friend and not being a complete idiot in front of him anymore.

I didn't say anything for a long time, thinking, until I saw he was worrying at my silence. "Harry, I had a silly crush on you when all you were to me was a celebrity. Over this last year, that's gone away with seeing you almost every day, seeing that you are a real boy." I paused. "And I don't want to do anything that risks us being friends. But I can't help but fancy you. A lot."

He smiled and I hugged him a little tighter than I ever had. "You make me feel safe and secure. But you have helped me be free. And I… I think you're really cute," I whispered as I felt my face rise several degrees. I slowly loosened my grip until we were just holding hands.

Harry was at a loss for words, so I decided to help him. "But I really am not sure what I want right now. I don't want to make any mistakes and hurt you. How about… we keep on how we have been for now. And when we are both ready to be more serious, we talk?"

Harry smiled and nodded. "Ok. I just don't want someone else coming in first."

I shook my head. "I promise that won't happen without talking to you first."

"Can we do something for Valentine's? Most of our classmates have coupled up at least just for the day."

I grinned. "I'd love to be your Valentine, Harry."

He smiled and I smiled back. "Is this ok?" he asked, gesturing to my right hand in his left."

"Definitely. We may get a look or two, but it's worth it to me."

"Me too."

We finally made it back to the tower, making plans for the next day along the way. My heart was still racing. I let go of his hand and said, "See you tomorrow."

He smiled and tucked a piece of stray hair behind my left ear. Then Harry kissed my cheek on the jawline, grazing the front of my ear in the process. "I'll be waiting."

Then he went up the stairs, leaving me standing there smoldering.

I woke up earlier than usual the next morning. Harry hadn't said what he wanted to do the next day but I didn't want to just sit in the library. Spring seemed to be coming early this year and I wanted to make our first… date? memorable. After putting on my underclothes (I had ended up upgrading to real bras at Christmas), I put on a blue capris that went just past my knees. I then slipped on my Christmas jumper. I also dared to put on a smattering of eyeshadow and blush from my birthday gift. Finally, I slipped an old piece of parchment into my purse.

By the time I was ready, Harry was in the Common Room waiting expectantly. I gave him a good morning hug and asked, "Do you have your cloak?"

He nodded. "The map?"

"Of course. There's secret passages to Hogsmeade…" He nodded. We ate breakfast as fast as we could and then I guided him to a hallway that was near the entrance.

Harry unfurled his cloak and I stepped close enough so we both were under it. Suddenly, Filch walked by and went right passed us. I almost gave us away with a giggle. "Let's go," he whispered.

Seeing Hogsmeade while invisible was interesting. The advantage was I could be… had to be very close to Harry the entire time. However, we couldn't talk. Even when there wasn't a teacher nearby, I had four brothers and a Hermione that were being protective of me. We slipped into a candy store named Honeydukes. It was crowded and didn't see any red hair, so we slipped off the cloak.

"So, are you more of a chocolate or candy girl?"

"Uh, chocolate except for during the summer when it melts. But you don't have to…" He grabbed one of the large sampler boxes.

"But I want to," he grinned at me. We waited in the queue to pay. After that, he said, "I asked Fred and George to sneak us some sandwiches from the kitchen when they went for their after practice snack yesterday."

We put the cloak back on and Harry led me towards a quiet corner on the edge of town. I saw a black dog out of the corner of my eye that looked to be following us, but didn't really pay him mind.

Harry spread his cloak out and we sat down.

Between bites of my sandwich, I said "Thanks. This is pretty nice."

"You're welcome. You don't mind? This isn't very flashy."

"Naw. I like simple most of the time." I popped one of the chocolates in my mouth. I pretended to toss one to Harry. He opened his mouth and I threw one in and laughed.

"Thanks, Gin. Tastes better than a Snitch."

"Hmm?"

He proceeded to tell me about his first Quidditch match. By the end I was cackling. "Hermione set Snape on fire?!"

I had another and threw a second one to Harry. "You know, if this fighting Tom doesn't pay well, you could get a job as a seal."

He quickly stuck his tongue out at me and then smiled. We were both having a lot more fun than we were this time last year.

Then I felt a chill in the air and fresh ice started forming on the tips of the grass. At first I thought it was just February, but I felt sick inside and horribly depressed. Me and Harry… this wasn't going to last. Dumbledore was going to change his mind and chuck me out of school. Mum and Dad would be so disappointed in me. Despite what we had said, Harry would find a much prettier girl than me… one who was in his station and had a quieter personality. I heard Tom reminding me of the ugly, poor girl I was.

Harry!

I looked over and he was on the ground, lurching uncontrollably, almost in a fit. Just then, I saw a dark form appear over us…. I barely recognized the creature from a textbook… a dementor. He was going to destroy Harry and then he might as well take me for afters. It wouldn't matter… But not Harry.

I stood up and trying to remember what Professor Lupin taught us, cast my strongest shield. It was up for a few seconds but the dementor slipped right passed it. I couldn't concentrate on anything with the ocean of depression I was drowning in. The shield fell, not that it was helping.

Suddenly, there was a shout and a tall, gangly, silver dog appeared over the ridge and bounded towards us. It chased away the dementor. I looked over and saw Sirius Black.

He rushed over and steadied me before I fell over. "Ginny, are you ok?"

I nodded, unable to speak. He grabbed a couple pieces of chocolate from my box. "Eat this, it'll help."

Harry took a few minutes to awake, but Sirius eventually got him up and eating some chocolate too. "Sirius…" he sputtered.

"Hey, kid. Good thing I caught a whiff of you outside Honeydukes… hard to smell much with all those sweets. I thought the two of you might try sneaking out. James would have done the same. Took longer for him to wear down Lils." He flashed his roguish smile.

"What was that thing?" I asked.

He shook his head. "Dementors. Normally they serve as the Azkaban guards, but Lucius Malfoy insisted on them being here to find Pettigrew. Though now I'm thinking he had this in mind. Or your feelings were so positive and strong, they couldn't help themselves." He sighed a minute and involuntarily shivered. "I've already had enough of them to last."

"You were able to send them away," I noticed.

"Ah, the Patronus charm. It can be difficult to master. But asking Moony to try to teach you would be smart, especially with them causing you to pass out, Harry."

Harry looked at me. "You didn't."

"I almost did," I admitted. "It was like… Tom and all my worst feelings at once."

Harry looked down for a moment and then said, "I heard a woman screaming for me and then a flash…. I think it was my mum, right before…." He couldn't help but shed a few tears. I hugged him closely, comforting my friend. Eventually, he said, "I need to learn how to fight them."

"I will too. I don't want those things in my head again."

"I should probably walk you back. Dumbledore will want to know you were attacked by dementors."

"Mum and Dad will find out we snuck out…"

"Sorry, I would normally cover for you, but we can't let this happen to others."

I nodded but didn't look forward to the upcoming lecture. I looked at Harry and decided that even so, it had definitely been worth it.

 ***Arthur***

I was in my shed working on some plugs for the motorbike, trying to get them to work reliably with the influence of my magic. Molly burst in, nearly knocking over a shelf. "Arthur!"

"Yes, dear?"

"I just got a floo call from Minerva." Never the start of a pleasant conversation. "Ginny and Harry snuck out to Hogsmeade. A dementor almost kissed both of them."

"Godric…."

"Sirius was keeping an eye on out and saved them."

"Thank Merlin for that at least. They are ok?"

Molly called down a bit. "Yes, both fine. Sirius said they were just having a picnic outside of the village…" She shook her head. "Those two are getting to be worse than Fred and George."

She turned around and went back to the house and I followed. Molly was equal parts relieved they were safe and upset at them for disobeying our wishes, especially since they would have been never been in danger if they had in the first place.

Harry and Ginny were getting a couple nights of detention for sneaking out. We also asked Remus to quietly confiscate the map and Harry's invisibility cloak, hoping to teach them some to be a bit more responsible.

Even so, the next morning after breakfast, my bride whipped out a quill and then performed the charm to record a Howler. "I'm happy they are safe, but both of them need to learn to be more careful. We aren't making rules for our own health," she muttered while sending it.

Work that next Monday was hectic to say the least. Dumbledore had burst into my office as soon as it as regular hours. "I'd like you to come with me to see the minister."

I reluctantly agreed. I wasn't too eager to become that well known by Fudge, at least while Dumbledore was expressing disapproval with his decisions.

Fudge had other meetings scheduled, but was forced to clear them when Dumbledore arrived. We walked in and skipped the pleasantries. "Fudge, I want those horrid creatures away from my school. Immediately. Arthur's daughter and Harry Potter were almost kissed on Saturday."

"My word. I am terribly sorry, I have no idea why they were confused like that. We can't have that sort of bad press right now. I was going to reassign them anyway, obviously Pettigrew isn't at Hogwarts. They'd have found him if he was."

"Thank you."

The minister looked towards me and said, "And thanks for keeping an eye on Harry, Arthur. The last thing we'd want would be those muggles abusing him. The Prophet would have made hay with that."

"Of course, minister, we've been happy to help."

"As long as you are here, Dumbledore, have you made a final decision about the Tri-Wizard competition? I think it's more than time to host it again, put some of the darkness behind us."

Dumbledore looked like a man out of excuses. "I still think it is too dangerous. However, I will remove my objections if we keep the underaged from participating. I also want a thorough review of the tasks and proper safety measures."

"I can agree to that, as long as Durmstrang and Beauxbatons do. I'll also make sure Crouch and Bagman will be at your disposal. It will be just the thing we need. I will also make sure the press covers everything as well, once the Quidditch World Cup is over."

"Thank you."

"And Arthur, I'll need help from your department before the Cup. A lot more foreign wizards coming in. A lot of them may have… contraband. It'll be a lot of late nights, but I'll try to get you some tickets to the final."

"Thank you, sir."

"Now if both of you don't mind, I have quite a few other appointments."

Dumbledore nodded and simple said with a smile. "Of course. Thanks for your time."

I saw Dumbledore out and then headed back to my never-ending mound paperwork. Before I made it to my level, I was interrupted by Mrs. Thomas, who worked in the Goblin Relations office. "Arthur, our new chief liaison for Gringotts just got in and is making the rounds. He's in your office at the present time," she said with a smile.

Odd. I finally opened the door to my little corner of the ministry and saw my oldest son, who I hadn't seen in over a year. "Bill?"

"Hey, Dad."

He stood up and I gave him a handshake that turned into a hug. "What are you doing here?"

He smiled as we sat down. "I liked Egypt but I was getting a bit homesick for England. And after what happened with Ginny, I felt it was a sign that I should be here. I took the first opening I could. They surprised me with a transfer order and told me to pack on Friday."

"Wow… well, all right then." That was really fast.

"I may need my own room back for a tad, until I can find a flat."

"Sure… well, you can have Ginny's old room." I explained, "After the run-in with Percy's old rat, her room was missing a wall for a while. It's fixed now, but Harry's in your old room and Ginny's in Charlie's." A memory popped in my head. "He'll be here late summer for the cup."

"Right, well, that'll be fine. So, how is everything with Ginny?"

"Well, so far, it's been fine, though no one's been home since Christmas." I chatted with him about some of the details I hadn't shared in the occasional letter ls I wrote. As the oldest, I had a special relationship with Bill. Especially as he got older and would help with his younger siblings, I valued his opinions and treated him like an adult at a younger age than the others. I was glad for him to be home.

 ***Ginny***

Most of the rest of the school year, to use a term I had heard from a muggleborn, completely sucked. Sirius had told Dumbledore and Professor Lupin everything that had happened. Afterwards, Lupin took my map and Harry's cloak. Our two detentions ended up being with him. He was teaching us the Patronus charm, which meant we actually would be doing something useful, which rarely happened with Filch.

The professor explained on our first night, "The incantation is important, but the power behind the spell is happy feelings and memories. Which is very difficult when a Dementor is nearby, trying to suck you dry of those feelings. Without them, all you'll be able to produce is a few wisps that won't stop anything…. With them…"

Lupin closed his eyes and concentrated for several seconds. He opened them and a silvery wolf appeared, sauntered around the room, and then evaporated into a mist. "Wow…." said Harry. He hadn't seen his godfather's.

"Professor, yours was a wolf and Sirius' was a dog…" I noticed.

"Yes, usually a corporeal patronus takes the form of an animal that represents your feelings or someone you have feelings for. All the Marauders' patronuses were their animal forms. Except Peter could never produce one. We thought it was just because of his lack of skill, but I now I believe it was because of his conflicted nature. You have to be at peace with yourself or it will never work."

Harry and I spent an hour practicing. By the end of the time, we were exhausted but we both had produced a few wisps. Harry looked disappointed.

Lupin kept encouraging us. "I think that's remarkable for the first day of practice. This is NEWT-level magic, you aren't going to pick it up the first couple goes." He paused in thought. "What were you thinking about?"

Harry responded, "When I first became Seeker for Gryffindor."

I said, "First day of Hogwarts."

He shook his head, "Those aren't nearly powerful enough. Homework for tomorrow night… focus on a powerful memory or thought. Your most powerful ones probably have a mixture of positive and negative feelings. The task will be to control your feelings and not be controlled by them. Now, both of you, head directly for the tower." He tapped a piece of confiscated parchment on his desk. "I'll be watching both of you."

I spent several hours that night before falling asleep wrestling with my task. I knew what my memory had to be. The day Harry became my best friend. But it also was the day I woke up in the Chamber and he almost died and it would have been my fault.

I found it came down to whose face I focused on. Harry's or Tom's. I made sure the last thought I had before giving in to my exhaustion was Harry's warm green eyes looking into my very being, desperate for my survival. The next day I made more progress but still very limited. Professor Lupin said we could practice more in the following weeks.

The last class of the day was Divination. It was difficult to stay awake normally, as I did my best to not pay attention to Trelawney's predicting Harry's death every other week. The boys thought it was a lark and usually had one or the other being viciously murdered during each scrap of homework, but for me it was hard to find funny. I had seen too many plans for people's deaths in Tom's head. Harry's especially.

So, between not paying attention and not sleeping a lot the night before, I wasn't surprised when I found myself waking up alone in class as Hermione was poking me. "Class is over, Ginny," she whispered.

I silently swore to myself. Trelawney said, "Miss Weasley, please stay after."

More detentions coming, I feared. But instead, she said to me, "Dear, I think you may have been in a trance… do you remember any words from your Inner Eye?"

I shook my head, "Sorry, Professor."

"Try, really hard. It may be deathly important…"

Suddenly, her eyes rolled to the back of her head and she began speaking in an unearthly tone.

"The Dark Lord returns

Seven anchors there shall be

Five made by his choosing

One made unawares

And one yet to come

A three-strand cord of the strongest type will overcome

Sealing the dark lord's final demise"

Trelawney returned to her normal, for her at least, self, and said, "I'm sorry, I must have… the weather up here is getting rather warm. You can hurry along to supper now."

I excused myself but before supper, I went to my room to find some privacy. I wrote down what she had said and then reread the… prophecy several times as I realized it was about Tom. I made a copy for my own keeping but knew I needed to not keep this to myself.

I had to rush through supper with Hermione, Ron, and Harry. It was too busy a place to bring up what I had heard. After supper, Harry and I again reported to Professor Lupin for our second night of detention, and I thought he'd be the best person to show. So, before we began, I interrupted.

"Professor… after Divination, Professor Trelawney started acting rather odd. She started speaking strangely and I wrote it down. I think it might be an actual prophecy."

He looked more than a bit concerned. I handed him a paper I had written it down on and he read it out loud. "Thanks, Ginny. Yes, this may be important. Can I have the memory as well?" I agreed and obliged. "I'll make sure the headmaster sees this."

He looked torn on what to do next. "But, I believe he's not here at the moment so we should continue with your training for tonight."

After a few minutes, Harry looked at me and smiled. Suddenly, the shimmering light that appeared from his wand suddenly came into shape and we all saw a young stag, four points. He was so surprised that it quickly vanished. Lupin cheered him in excitement.

"That's it, Harry! You got it!"

"Great job, Harry," I responded too, maybe a tiny bit jealous he had been first.

He looked at me and Lupin. "My dad… that was his form."

"Yes it was. Although, his was a bit more mature of a stag. Then again, he didn't manage the patronus or the transformation until he was a few years older than you are. Now, the most important thing is try to duplicate what you just did and hold it longer."

We began again. It was physically tiring as well as mentally, concentrating like that, trying to get the spell to work. But it was most draining emotionally.

I tried something different. I stopped thinking about the memory. Instead, I tried to think of myself five or ten years into the future. Maybe a little taller. With the boy who was standing next to me. It was probably just a dream but it was something that warmed me inside. I felt the emotions come out of me, gather in my wand and then explode.

A small silvery doe appeared in front of me. I tried hard to not break the connection and it made a circuit around the room, stood before me, and then dissolved. Before I knew it, Harry was hugging me as tightly as he had on our picnic. I had the energy to produce another one and Harry's stag reappeared. They walked towards each other. "Looks like they're friends," I said.

Remus smiled at both of us. "That's really great, you two. But performing in front of a dementor is another thing. You'll need to keep practicing until you can bring out your emotions at a moment's notice." He looked at the clock. "And, I think you can leave early. The moon's rising in ten minutes so… well, I'll be occupied. Please try to stay out of trouble," he said as he dismissed us.

I was so excited that night in the common room and we told Hermione and Ron what had happened. "That's quite amazing!" She said. "I'm so jealous. I'll have to work on that with you. Especially if the ministry is not always in control of the dementors."

"That will probably get worse. Dad's said Dumbledore thinks they will turn if… when Tom…" I stopped.

"What is it?" Ron asked.

I lowered my voice. "He's coming back. After Divination, Trelawney went a little more odd than normal and actually gave a real prophecy, I think. It said he was coming back soon and he had anchors that would have to be destroyed."

That ruined the mood for the evening. Ron said, "We'll stick together. I'm sure Dumbledore will know what to do."

Harry tried agreeing but he was doing a rubbish job of hiding his worry. But we all managed for most of the spring. Hermione said prophecies sometimes never came true and it could mean something that happened years into the future, so we had an unspoken agreement to stop talking about it. No sense worrying.

The second to last week before school ended, Harry and I were trying to enjoy our usual banter. Meanwhile, Hermione was trying to get us all schedules set up for our revising. Harry seemed to have enough and after a few minutes he excused himself. "I'm going to turn in. One last practice, early tomorrow morning, before the Hufflepuff match." It would be the deciding factor in the cup. Slytherin had finished the season but led us by less than one Snitch and so Wood would not be taking it easy.

Hermione, Parvati, and I worked on homework in our room as the common room was taken up by OWL and NEWT study groups. I actually did take some of Hermione's notes to heart, but I wasn't re-reading all my textbooks. The twins were nowhere to be found. They had actually shown the courtesy to not mess with people's study habits, at least those that cared about their grades. Lavender and Seamus hadn't been seen all night.

The next morning, breakfast was a mess. Chaser practice had been last of the day so I had a small lie-in. By the time I was dressed and at the table, Harry, Hermione, and Ron were talking. They stopped as soon as I sat down.

Harry looked as if he hadn't an ounce of sleep. "Nervous about the match tomorrow?" I asked between bites.

"No. It's just…" He stopped.

"What?"

Harry glared at Ron and Hermione for a moment and then suddenly got up. "I have some stuff."

Ron said, "So, Hermione, are you going to be able to come over this summer, then?" Blatant change of topic.

"Yeah, my parents will be traveling for a training conference in Canada, training in some new techniques. It's two weeks starting at the end of July, so I'll be over then and they said I could stay for the cup and then until school comes."

"Wicked."

"It'll be nice to have another girl around," I said.

"Now would either one of you tell me what's going on with Harry?"

Ron said, "Not sure," between bites.

"You're a rubbish liar."

Hermione said, "Ginny, I think he needs some time to sort a few things out. He made us promise to not tell you. When he gets like this, best to give him some space.

I should have known that was not the advice to follow, but I was too shaken to object. "Fine. You three do whatever you want then." I got up and found Luna, probably the only person from my first year that I talked to.

"Hey, Ginny. You look rather infested with nargles today. Or worse."

I tried to smile but failed. "Yes, I'll work on that."

"By the way, I was wondering if you wanted to visit after school is over. My father's planning an extra large publication run on a special summer periodical and could use an extra hand. We could spend time together, like we did before we started school." Luna used to live with a few miles of us but her family moved away when her mother passed.

When I didn't answer, she added, "If you would be homesick or miss Harry, I understand."

I shook my head. "Probably not a problem. I'll let you know, ok?"

"Sure. Now I had better get to Charms. Professor Flitwick would not be happy to deduct points from his own house this late in the year."

I watched as she drifted away.

The rest of my friends started drifting away as well. Harry wouldn't even talk to me the rest of the day and Ron and Hermione were doing their best to be absent and not caught in the middle.

Time dragged on but soon it was the final Quidditch match. I should have been happy but seeing Harry right next to me, treating me like a stranger…

I had to stop looking at him before I lost control.

I tried concentrating on Wood's instructions, but it didn't work.

Ten minutes into the match and I had already dropped the Quaffle twice, both leading to scores. As I flew passed our goal, Wood yelled at me. "Weasley, get your head in the game or I'm putting a reserve in!"

That helped snap me out of it. I wasn't going to let some stupid boy ruin my play.

It took a while before Angelina sent the ball my way again, but this time I was ready. I dodge the Hufflepuff beaters and then Fred cleared a path with one of the Bludgers. Soon, my first score of the day.

Unfortunately, it was my last. Angelina made up for it though and we had made the necessary points.

Then Jordan yelled from the announcer's box, "And there's the Snitch!" Harry was having an off day as well. He had been mindlessly circling high above the stands. Cedric Diggory, the Hufflepuff Seeker, easily had the better angle and came up with the score.

Game over. We still won the cup, barely, but it was a bit of a hollow victory.

We landed, disappointed. Harry could barely show his face. "I'm sorry, guys." But he wouldn't look at me.

Long after Angelina and Katie were done changing, I was alone in the locker room. Stupidly crying. Over the game. Over someone I thought had been my best friend. Over a life that I thought I had that was slipping away.

But that was enough of wallowing for me and I was tired of if. I stood myself up, wiped my face off, and marched straight for the tower.

I scanned the common room and saw Ron and the rest of his bunkmates except Harry. Most likely hiding himself away too. I waited a few minutes until I was able to slip upstairs unnoticed.

The door wasn't locked so I cracked it open. "Harry, I want to talk."

"Please…"

"Nope, not good enough." I swing the door open. "I'm not going anywhere until you decide to talk. Even if you hate me, I deserve to not be ignored."

"Gin, I could never…"

"Then what?" I sat next to him and calmed my voice. He was trying to hide it but he was shaking.

Harry whispered, "Tom's alive. Right now."

"No…"

He nodded. "I… I've been having dreams of him. Not exactly nightmares. Images of him talking to Peter. He has a pet snake that he talks to, he's had it kill some muggles for sport. There's also some big plan coming up at school." He stopped and then finished up. "I think the dreams are real. Sirius does too."

The news was frightening but part of me already knew he was coming. "I'm so sorry. I can't imagine."

"Yes, you can. You more than anyone. You shouldn't have to again."

The last few days were becoming clearer. "That's not your choice."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you more." He withdrew again but at least I knew something.

After the final Defense class, Lupin called the three best friends and me aside. He said, "I'll miss the four of you. I'm not sure what's been going on the last few days, but please fix it. You are going to need each other with the coming storm."

He gave Harry the map and the cloak. Harry turned to give me the map, but I waved him off. I didn't want to think about it for now. "Since I'm no longer your teacher, I don't have any reason to hold onto these," he explained.

"You mean, for now, right?" asked Harry.

"No, Harry, I'm not going to come back next year. The headmaster has asked Sirius and I to go after a former friend. Between the message Ginny heard and some other signs, he's deeply distressed. We may be gone for several months."

"Ok. I'll miss both of you, but it must be important." Remus nodded and then indicated he needed to finish packing so we left.

Harry looked at Ron and said, "I guess we'll have to break in a new professor again."

"That seems like a challenge, Potter," I said. "Do you think they'll be closer to Lupin or Lockhart?"

"With my luck? As long as they are a better teacher than Snape."

"No one's that unlucky," Ron said.

He looked at me and said, "I'm luckier than most" before quickly glancing away. "More than I deserve."

Harry was at least being decent to me again, but there was still a wall. It was terribly frustrating and confusing. I hoped it would come down soon.


	5. Year 4, Part 1

***Ginny***

Luna was chasing butterflies. We were taking a break after finishing the proofreading her dad had asked us to do for the day. He was generously giving me a few galleons for my work during the last week, so I made sure to do my best. Luna always managed to seem carefree. It wasn't just an act, despite what most people thought. And she wasn't merely crazy either. Luna just… she really did live in a different place than most did. But sometimes she let me visit.

I was enjoying the mid-June afternoon sun, itching to get back on my broom. Luna didn't care for flying though, so I had let mine go directly to the Burrow. It probably would have been an unfair advantage against the butterflies anyway.

Luna's dad came to supper a bit late, wearing an odd necklace. "Mr. Lovegood, what is that?" I found myself asking.

"Oh this… it's a symbol of the Deathly Hallows. You haven't heard of them?"

"No, sir, I haven't."

"What about the story of the Three Brothers and Death?"

Ah, that. Wasn't my favorite. I supposed one should expect a story about Death to have a lot of people dying, though. "Yes, I remember my mum telling me that yarn once or twice."

"Well, there are some of us who believe that the gifts from Death in the story — the Resurrection Stone, Elder Wand, and Death's Cloak — are at least partially real. I've been searching for them all my life. Sadly, so far to no success. But just because you can't find something doesn't mean it isn't there. I hope to someday find other searchers that will aid my quest.

Thoughts of Harry's cloak entered my head that I brushed aside. It was something he seemed to want to keep secret. But thinking of Harry hurt. A lot. Being angry was getting tiring. I looked at Luna and she said, "You're going?"

She had been able to tell that at one glance. "Yeah… I'm sorry but there's a conversation I need to have."

She smiled at me and I think she knew more than I even wanted to tell myself. "Sure. Say hi to Harry for me. I'll see you on the train if not sooner."

"Thanks, Luna. You're the best."

Mr. Lovegood volunteered to apparate me near our house. I couldn't floo with the Fidelius charm, so I had a few minutes' walk. I bumped into Fred and George who were working on something out of my mother's view.

"Welcome home, sis."

"Harry's flying over on the pitch with Bill."

Right. I felt bad for not having seen my brother already. I walked over and they were actually on the ground, though they were holding their brooms. It looked like a serious conversation. Finally, Harry looked up and saw me.

Bill gave me a hug. "Glad to see you, Ginny. I'll catch up with you in a bit. I'm in your old room."

He left us and I stood there waiting. Harry finally started talking. "Gin, I'm sorry. He's more powerful than when he was with Quirrell. It's really confusing and scary. It's like I'm in his body."

I was genuinely afraid. "You told Dad and Sirius?"

He nodded.

"It still doesn't explain mistreating me at school."

He looked down at his feet. "I know, I'm sorry. I didn't want to worry you. And I know he's coming after me. He's tried several times. If it wasn't for the charm on the house, I think we all would be dead. I guess I feel bad about it all. If you weren't my friend, you'd be safer."

I took one glance at Harry and was about ready to slap him across the face good and hard for being such an idiot but I stopped myself. He was rigid as as a board and I thought he was expecting me to take out my anger on him physically. I took a deep breath, trying to be the calm one for once. "Harry, he went after me in the diary long before he knew about you. How many times last year did you tell me it wasn't my fault?" I didn't wait for a smart response. "So were you lying to me all this time?"

"No, Gin… I'd never lie to you."

"Then it's not your fault either!"

I grabbed a fistful of his shirt and brought him close. "Tom wants you alone and afraid! And you have been helping him do that!"

I was finally reaching him. He nearly collapsed, putting more of his weight on me then I could handle and we slowly knelt to the ground. I put my arms around him and he cautiously did the same to me.

"You aren't alone, Harry. Me, Dad, Mum. Everyone. You're part of our family and we will do whatever we need to. We all care about you."

I got him to lift his head up and I softly said, "Look me in the eyes." He obeyed and I saw a glimmer of the emerald flame I had missed. "You are not alone. I need you to promise that you believe that."

"I do, Gin."

"And I need you to promise me that you never do anything like this again. I… it hurt so badly, Harry. I can't get any closer to you if this is going to repeat. It'd kill me. Just as surely as Tom would."

"I… ok. I promise, friends forever." He looked down for a moment and then softly asked, "Forgive me?"

I smiled but it was bittersweet. "I will, but I'm going to need some time before things will be the same."

He nodded in understanding and we slowly made our way back to the house.

After supper, I cornered Ron and verbally took a few chunks out of him for his part in what had happened. I probably wasn't seeing Hermione until around Harry's birthday, so I'd have to wait. I didn't feel like writing it in a letter.

That evening, Harry brought up a new topic at dinner. "Bill?"

"Yes?"

"You know a lot about wards and such. Would the Fidelius charm block the underage trace?"

He thought for a minute. "I suppose it probably would block it for anyone who hasn't been told the secret. Though it really doesn't matter. With that much magic, the trace would never be conclusive enough to punish the underage wizard. Or witch," he added for my benefit.

Dad said, "It's actually an open secret in the ministry that the trace is almost never enforced on a magical household. The trace detects magic but not the caster. Unless parents report it themselves, they aren't punished for magic done at home."

I realized something. "But that means, muggle-borns are really the only ones caught?"

Dad nodded. "I'm afraid so. Another act of discrimination. Many pure-bloods seem more skilled simply because they are practicing all summer. Sometimes with tutors. A few of us try to abide by the rules."

Ron spoke up with a roll in his mouth. "I guess I can understand, Dad. But Harry and Ginny were attacked. Maybe you could let us bend the rules so we can keep practicing?"

Harry agreed. "If I don't try the Patronus charm for three months, it'll be like starting all over."

My mother surprised me by backing up the boys. "Dear, if no one knows… and you said yourself they haven't gotten enough practice in Defense. Merlin knows Remus was the only decent teacher they've had in that position for years."

Dad sighed for a moment. "You're right, Molly. If You-Know-Who is coming back… if you promise to be careful and only practice when your mother or me or Bill are around, I think it will be ok to work on your dueling skills."

"Thank you," said Harry.

I added, "Yeah, Dad. We won't disappoint you."

Bill didn't need to go to Gringotts the next day, so he took the first shift supervising us. Ron had thought up some different ways of practice. He had set up some targets about twenty paces away. "It doesn't matter how powerful the spell is if you miss."

When it was my turn, I missed four out of ten the first go, worse than either boy. Harry stood up after watching my performance. "If you don't mind…"

I didn't object. He placed his right hand over mine and his left on my hip. "Try to point your body towards the target." At least that's what I thought he said as I felt a wave of heat go through me. "Straighten your grip and then aim…" I nodded and shot a stunner at the block of wood and hit it square.

"Good job!" he said.

"Thanks for helping," I said with a smile. "You're a good teacher."

When we were done, Harry and Ron immediately scampered inside. Harry wanted to freshen up and my brother wanted a snack. I decided to wait outside until my turn in the bath. Bill hadn't been working out so he was enjoying a lemonade.

"I missed you," I said as I walked over and gave him a hug.

"You, too, Firefly." I grinned at him. It was my nickname when he watched me as a tyke during the summers a long time ago.

"You never talked too much about Egypt," I said sitting down.

"Was never a big letter writer. And most days were not as exciting as you probably thought. The ones that were, well, often not something I could put in a letter. Especially one that Mum could read."

"I did first have thoughts of you surrounded by treasure," I admitted.

"Well, most of that's already been discovered. The goblins are really more interested in information… ancient spells and writings. That often can be far more profitable."

That was surprising given the common wizarding stereotypes, which I was learning were probably all wrong. I couldn't help but needle him a bit. "No pretty witches down there?"

He shrugged. "I kept busy and I figured I was going to not be there forever. I may have seen one or two, but nothing serious." Good thing, too. Now that I wasn't little, Mum would probably start pestering him about grandkids.

After another sip, he added, "I'm sorry I wasn't there for you, year before last."

"I… it's ok. You and Charlie both have your own lives. Sucks being so far apart in age sometimes."

"Yeah, I missed out on a lot being at Hogwarts and then out. I'm not going anywhere now."

"Good. Charlie's not coming back until right before the cup though?"

"Yeah, and that's a surprise to me that he's coming."

"Charlie seems to like his dragons more than crowds of people."

"Yeah, I think he's still dealing with… you know what happened to him, fifth year?"

I nodded. "Not at the time obviously but I heard enough that I asked Dad once."

"Ok. I think he's still anxious sometimes."

"I can't blame him there. I had nightmares after… Harry helped me."

He smiled. "He's smitten. I hope you know that."

"I do. I have him right where I want him." I smirked.

"I'm going to head back in now. I don't need to hear that from my baby sister. Makes me feel old."

I playfully hit him on the shoulder and followed him inside.

Harry, Rom, and I took advantage of the agreement with Dad as much as we could. The twins joined us often too, but they had other projects they were working. It was a good thing Mum was so good at basic healing spells. Almost every day, one of us had at least a bruise or worse when something went wrong. Harry the most of all with being so reckless. The first time he hit me, he got really upset with himself until I set him straight.

Summer was nearly half over when Hermione came. With Bill around and Percy not yet moved out, she was rooming with me. Charlie was the stockiest of my brothers so his old bed was plenty wide for the two of us girls.

As soon as we were alone, I brought up the end of the year. "I really wished you would've stuck up for me," I gently said while pulling on a night shirt. Too warm for anything else and I wasn't going back downstairs.

"What?"

"End of the year. Harry's stupid idea to protect me by pushing away."

She sighed as she sat in the bed. "Yes, I know. I really did try to stop him but, he's so stubborn."

I smiled, "Yeah, that I've seen… and I guess it's not your fault, but you're the closest thing to a sister I have. I was mad at all of you, but mainly Harry. I'm still not completely happy."

Hermione sighed. "I'm not an expert, but he was doing it because he cares for you. And you were so upset for the same reason."

She was right and I had probably punished him enough. Hermione and Ron may have wanted to let Harry work through things by his stubborn self, but I vowed to kick his arse when needed. Someone had to.

Trying to change subjects, I asked, "How has summer been? How are your parents?"

"They're fine," she said as I lay down in the bed, getting a bit more comfortable. She stayed sitting up. "Their practice is going well, never a lack of teeth that need cleaning and mending."

She continued. "I actually worked with them in their office, answering phones, getting deliveries. I got to give out toys and stickers to kids after their visits."

"Sounds fun. My dad's taken me to his office once or twice but not for long, I don't think it's encouraged."

"Well, it started out nice, spending time with them. But then it made me remember… I used to plan on becoming a dentist myself and taking over their practice when I was older. Now, even if I went to a muggle university after Hogwarts, half the things they do seem pointless, considering what I could do with magic."

I tried to understand. "I guess healing is very different for them."

"Home's the same way. Every summer, I feel more and more like I'm visiting foreigners. Their world isn't mine anymore."

She seemed melancholy. Not crying or really sad, but just… realizing things changed. I tried comforting her. "I guess I've never been in a muggle house for very long. It would be different. Dad would be thrilled, though. You can be here as much as you want. It is nice having another girl around. And another person for practice will even things up."

"Practice? What sort?"

I told her a bit about our summer lawbreaking. She was quite indignant at first. "That's… that's against the rules. You could get expelled!"

"No one's said anything since. Like I, between the charm and three adults here, no one knows."

"Still…"

"It can't help but be useful for your practicals. OWLs are less than two years away."

"Well, there is that," she said with a smile. My friend didn't seem to have much complaints after that.

I did though. Sirius was taking Harry to his place in London for two weeks. He said there was a lot of things to teach him — helping him get ready to manage his inheritance that he would come into in three years and other things befitting someone of a noble head of house. Dad had done the same for Bill and Charlie though learning to the manage several large tracts of land wasn't necessary for them. He tried to make it sound boring, but no one believed that they were spending fourteen days at Gringotts.

Sirius stopped by in the morning. Harry ran up to him and hugged him. "Ready to go?"

"Yes, I am Padfoot."

"Molly, if you and Arthur want some quiet time, I could take the four of them off your hands for a few days. Grimmauld Place is plenty big."

"Thanks for the offer, dear, but I will need some help around here." My mother obviously didn't think he could handle all four of us. Mum and him got along ok, but Sirius… well, he acted more like a twenty year-old than being in his mid-thirties. No one faulted him for wanting to relive some years that had been stolen from him, but no one expected him to discipline anyone either.

"How about Ginny and Harry then." That was never going to happen. "Or the boys."

I glared at Ron before he said anything. "You should spend some time with Harry," he offered. "Maybe over Christmas."

So it would just be the three of us and I was going to train and exercise hard and not disappoint him when Harry got back. We had all been so busy, I didn't realize that he was going to be gone over his birthday until it was too late to get him something before he left. Finally, I decided to give him one thing that only I could. I sat down in my room when Ron and Hermione were having their usual after-dinner row and decided to write a simple letter.

 _Harry,_

 _Happy Birthday!_

 _You have made this last year so much better than the one before. I hope from the bottom of my heart I've helped do the same for you. I've decided I have waited long enough. Whenever you're ready, if you ask me to be your girlfriend, I'll have an answer._

Yours _truly,_

 _Ginny_

There. That seemed straightforward enough for him to not have to guess at anything (Subtlety was never Harry's strong suit) while not being more forward than I felt ready to be. Sirius came and picked him up after breakfast. I got permission to use Errol, my parents owl, and sent him the message. That night I felt both more relieved and more anxious than I had ever remembered.

 ***Arthur***

This was going to be five days in a row I came home after dark. Whatever had let the ministry to schedule the first Triwizard cup in over a generation the same year we were hosting the Quidditch World Cup final… it was either really bad luck or really good luck. Pretty much everyone other than the unspeakables were helping with security. I really felt bad that I had barely had time to say hello to Charlie since he had come home on holiday for the cup. We even had hired out all of Gringotts' curse breakers to help put up wards. So one silver lining was getting to work with my oldest first-hand. Another was we were given such deep discounts on tickets that the entire family could afford to go.

I was scheduled to head back to the stadium for more field work but I had to manage my normal job as well, so I forced myself to be at my desk for the first part of the day.

I was surprised when Harry and Sirius stopped by. "How are things?" I asked.

Harry responded, "Great. Sirius has… well, we've been getting a lot done."

His godfather interrupted. "Can I buy you lunch, Arthur? I'll be dropping off Harry tomorrow. Remus has done all the prep work he needs so I'll be scarce for some time."

"Uh, sure. Thanks."

He insisted on going one of the nicer cafes nearby. After we had placed our order (bacon sandwich for me) and after some nudging, Harry proceeded to talk. It was a conversation I knew was coming but would never have been ready for. After several minutes of talking, I simply said, "Yes, that's fine, Harry."

He smiled. "Thank you. I won't let you down. Or her."

After lunch, I bade Sirius goodbye and promised to see Harry tomorrow after I was done with work. However, it would end up being the day after, the morning of the final. By the time Bill and I returned home after picking up Charlie at the international portkey centre, everyone else was asleep.

That morning, we were all up bright and early. Well, that had been the plan. With the amount of people in the house, it was always rather chaotic trying to leave the house at a designated time. I gave up on telling everyone it was half an hour before we really had to go, because once my two youngest figured that out, we had ended up being later than ever.

Molly had made some apple turnovers the night before for us to nosh on while walking to the portkey. I did a quick count as I locked the door behind us — Molly, Bill, Charlie, not Percy as he had spent the night on the grounds as Crouch's personal assistant, the twins, Ron, Hermione, and Harry and Ginny. Ginny wasn't letting Harry more than a few feet away from her, let alone out of her sight. After a brisk morning's half hour walk, we arrived at the portkey location.

Amos Diggory and his son Cedric had arrived before us. I shook his hand. "Been too long, Amos. Anyone else showing?"

"Um, don't think so, Arthur. Anyone else nearby that I know of didn't get tickets. My, you have quite the haul with you. All yours?"

I chuckled. Kind of? "Just the redheads. The other girl is Hermione Granger, a muggleborn, and Harry…"

"Harry Potter, my word," he said. I could almost feel Harry's enthusiasm let out, as he had grown tired of his celebrity years ago.

"Yes, Harry's been living with us for the last year, when he's not at Hogwarts of course."

"Of course. Cedric stole the last match of the season out from under his nose if I do recall."

His boy tried to be modest. "It was close, Dad, and it was more luck than anything. Harry had an off day."

"Nonsense, you were being more than just lucky." The man was obviously proud of his son. I couldn't fault that but didn't appreciate him having to run down mine.

Thankfully, my pocket watch chimed. "I think we're just about time to go." It got crowded fast as we all had to squeeze in and get at least a finger on the old boot that had been charmed. Suddenly, I felt the familiar spinning and we were on the grounds.

We had some time to spend before we needed to get to our seats. I had a tent to set up in case since the match would likely go late into the night. We were technically in muggle territory, so we were doing things the fun way.

Harry volunteered, "Should we get some water?"

"That sounds like a good idea," I replied. I had two five gallon buckets and the closest faucet was a hundred yards away, so I sent the four of them off. The twins… had already disappeared. "Bill, Charlie, help me with the tent?"

Charlie had a run at the instructions but gave up. "These are more confusing than reading Romanian."

Bill took them into hand. After a few minutes, he started deciphering them. "Ok, this poles need to connect and then cross those…"

Charlie was his usual quiet self. The three of us worked well as a team.

It was almost as difficult as some remodeling that we had done to the Burrow on our own. Finally, it was up.

Of course, it didn't look nearly large enough for the family on the outside, but it was heavily charmed. On the inside, there was enough rooms for everyone after they doubled up. It looked like Percy would end up getting a room to himself as the odd one out.

The younger ones got back a little than I had expected. They were also all half soaked. Molly took one look at them and exclaimed, "Explain yourselves!"

My daughter sheepishly grinned. "I guess I started it. I doused Harry with half a bucket to cheer him up. He was moping from missing Sirius too much."

"Then I grabbed her bucket and tried to get her with the rest, but Merlin, she's fast," Harry added. "Drenched Ron instead."

Ron finished. "I tried getting Harry and Ginny back but Hermione walked straight into it…"

They all burst out laughing, even Hermione. She said, "I did make sure the buckets were filled before we came back."

Molly sighed. "Well, we aren't supposed to be using charms since this is muggle-owned land. I imagine you'll just have to watch the match wet. Now where are Fred and…"

"George?" said Fred. "Just doing a bit of business research."

Their joke shop plans. Molly shook her head in surrender. Deep down inside, I knew she loved it all.

We found our seats. They were decent enough considering the difficulty in finding a block of open seats large enough for us. Then my spirit was a little dampened as the minister walked by with Malfoy and his son. Minister Fudge said, "Arthur, glad to see you here."

I replied, "Thank you, sir. It's pleasant to see everyone's work come together."

"Yes it is. Speaking of which, have you seen old Barty? His house elf was saving his seat but it looks empty now. Shame for him to miss this."

I was going to respond affirmatively, but the minister had turned to greet someone else. Draco Malfoy said to Ron, "I can't believe your father had to buy tickets here in the lower deck."

Lucius shook his head and said in mock reproach, "Son, that wasn't very polite. I'm sure Arthur did the best he could do without selling his hovel. But my word, picking up orphans and mudbloods now… I imagine you feel fortunate that neither of them know any better."

I was counting backwards in my head. The last time I lost my temper with these two, Ginny and Harry almost died. Thankfully Molly was on the other side of our row with Bill and Charlie and wasn't hearing this.

Then Draco told Ron, "Doesn't your mother know they invented the potion fifty years ago? She definitely could have done with less of a litter."

Ginny glared. "It's obvious your mother knew and were all thankful. She must have had some decency in her heart to not inflict an innocent babe with having you as a sibling." Draco didn't have a response. "And by the way, I told Harry I get to help when there is a second round."

Harry gently touched her elbow. "Let's just enjoy the game, Gin. He's not worth missing a score." Harry got both her to turn away towards the field and the Malfoy's eventually slinked off to their box with the minister. Ron gave Hermione a gentle but quick embrace. The 'm' word really hurt her.

The match was very good, though it was almost too fast to follow. The Bulgarian seeker, Viktor Krum, was becoming world famous despite his age. Harry was enthralled and taking mental notes. Too bad he wouldn't be able to use anything he saw this next year.

The kids probably got more out of the match. I had never played myself but I did enjoy the game, no more so than when my girl had shamed Slytherin last fall. Almost a year ago, which seemed impossible. She was almost thirteen and I was going to have to figure out how to be the father of a woman.

Ireland was thrashing Bulgaria and the margin was only getting worse. Finally, Krum put his team out of their misery by catching the Snitch. Game over, Ireland wins.

The most excited of us were the twins. They were jumping and yelling in excitement. I hadn't known either of them to exactly be Irish fans, so I suspected they may have placed a wager or two. At their age though, half a year to seventeen, I decided to let them make their own choices and face their own consequences. They were going to do what they wanted anyway.

As we walked back in the revelry, I saw Harry slip an arm momentarily around Ginny as if he was daring himself. Nothing inappropriate, but definitely not something he would do with Ron or Hermione. She responded by leaning into him.

My thoughts were quickly interrupted by a chorus of screaming and chaos. I looked around and saw the Dark Mark above the stadium. Not here…. There would be a riot. People already were stampeding.

I grabbed Charlie. "You and Bill, please help your mother get everyone back to the tent. And stay there." I looked at the twins and said, "Fred, George, now is not the time." Percy insisted on coming with me.

We ran off and tried to find anyone from the ministry that needed help. I finally bumped into a familiar face. It was Sirius' cousin on duty with her auror badge. She had been over a few times with him and Lupin during preparation for their current mission. "Tonks!"

"Arthur!" She scanned the crowd and then approached me. "Need help? Your family ok?"

"Yes, they should be in our tent by now. And you… have there been anyone killed?"

She shook her head. "No bodies yet. Crouch is badly injured. We lost him for a moment and he seems a bit dazed, so he is at the first aid tent tent getting checked out before we send him to St. Mungo's."

Percy looked worried. "I'll go see to him." He ran off towards the medical tent to make sure his boss would make it.

Tonks came a little closer to not be overheard. "Fudge and Lucius Malfoy are both missing. Draco was stunned with his own wand." She looked around. "The crowd seems to be calming down a bit. Kingsley's got rid of the Dark Mark finally. We have a few broken bones and such from people being plowed into. But now… we're all looking for the minister."

I volunteered to help her look. After half an hour, the crowd had finally thinned out but it was pitch black. Even with our wands lit, it was pretty pointless to continue the search. I bumped into Kingsley, who told me that Draco finally woke up but he repeated over and over he didn't know anything. His mother appeared very quickly and insisted on taking him back to Malfoy Manor. They had no cause to hold him so Draco and Narcissa left.

Tonks reached into a pocket in her robe and took out a piece of paper. "New orders," she explained. After a moment to read, she wrote something and looked up. "Now assigned to me. The next person in the ministry VIP list that hasn't been seen by an auror is Harry. I need to get eyes on him and make sure he's ok."

Stunned that the ministry was keeping those sort of records, I nodded. "Of course, I'll take you to our campsite."

 ***Ginny***

It was a madhouse getting back to our tent. Everyone was pushing and shoving, desperate to get as far from the strange skull as possible. Mum called out, "Ginny, grab someone's hand. If you get separated in this mess, you'll be hard to see and liable to get trampled."

I had to protest that a little. "Mum, I'm not a baby. I know where the tent is," I said, half-heartedly.

"Ginevra…."

"Oh, fine." I winked at Hermione and sidestepped to the right and did what I had been wanting to all day. "I have Harry's. Are you happy?" I was.

"Yes. Watch the sass or I'll make you hold mine."

Harry asked, "Why is everyone so scared."

I imagined he meant to ask one of my older brothers or my mother, but Hermione answered, "It's You-Know-Who's mark."

"It's still just a charm."

Bill explained, "Harry, it's the mark used when they killed someone. People would come home and see that and know their family had been destroyed. And only a Death Eater can conjure it."

Mum added, "The last time it was seen… it would have been your house, dear."

Harry nodded grimly.

And then his legs gave out and Harry collapsed to the ground. He started to groan and grabbed his scar. I was having a hard time lifting him back up. Thankfully, Ron came along and pulled him up. My brother put Harry's arm over his shoulder and helped him lean into him. Harry grimaced in pain and every so often, his head flinched.

"I got you, mate. We have to keep moving or you're going to get ran over." Harry nodded and seemed to be barely awake.

Fred got Harry's other arm and we were able to get back to our tent a few minutes later. Ron led him to their section of the tent and lay him down. Mum was frantic and Charlie looked worried. "Is he having a fit?"

I shook my head. "He's been seeing Tom… You-Know-Who… off and on during the summer. Like from his perspective. We're not sure why. Harry think they are real visions, not just nightmares."

Bill said, "I think that scar of his is much more than we know. I asked Dumbledore but he's been evasive."

Ron quietly noticed, "It hasn't happened before when he's been awake. Something must have changed."

I couldn't help but think of the skull in the sky that had only recently vanished.

Mum yelled out, "Whenever he does wake up, he won't need half a dozen people in his face. Everyone take a couple steps back. Ron, go get some water for when he comes to."

My eyes didn't stray from him from a second. I just stood there, feeling incredibly powerless which was infuriating. Finally, I had had enough. Before anyone could stop me, I grabbed the pitcher out of Ron's hands and upended over Harry's face.

Harry gasped and sputtered. "Merlin, that's cold!"

I laughed at the comical view of it all. "Don't do that again."

Harry's smile vanished. "I doubt what happened will ever happen again…"

Suddenly, Dad and a lady auror walked in. Mum rushed up to him. "Harry passed out on the way back. He just now woke up."

The auror said, "Is he ok, though?"

Harry answered, "Yes, I'm fine, Tonks." I hated when he said that, given that 'fine' for him meant not currently under a curse. Harry looked at me and explained, "She's Sirius' cousin. She came by a few times when I was over at his place."

He finally sat up and said, "The minister is missing?"

"Yes," Dad said, "how did you…."

"I'm trying to sort it all out, but I an pretty sure he's dead," Harry said quietly. "I saw Peter and then Mr. Malfoy appeared with the minister and then a bit later, someone named Barty. Barty tied up the minister and then Peter…" He stopped.

I went over and held Harry's hand. "It's ok…"

Harry nodded and took a breath. "Peter cut his arm off and threw it into a cauldron. Then they cut the minister's throat and it's fuzzy but I think whatever body Voldemort had was thrown in. Then he came out."

Mum gasped. Tonks asked, "Can he… is he fully remade?"

"I think so. He used a wand to cast a spell on Mr. Malfoy. Crucio, I think he said."

Dad whispered, "That's an unforgiveable; it's used to torture people."

"Yeah, that's what it did. He was angry that Mr. Malfoy hadn't found him sooner, acted like he turned his back on him. He spent several minutes screaming while that was being used on him. Several other men in masks showed up as well, but he was disappointed in the showing."

Dad looked at him, "Harry, you're absolutely sure…. was there anything else?"

"He said something about being mad they couldn't have used me instead, but I was too protected. Mr. Malfoy was close enough to the minister that taking him was easy. That's all I really can remember, it was mostly a blur."

I could have lost him tonight… if Dad hadn't gotten between Lucius and Harry…

Tonks hair turned gray. "I have to tell… someone."

Dad said, "We can't go through the official channels. Dumbledore, I think he'll believe Harry. Is there anyone you trust, Tonks?"

"Moody and Kingsley will listen to Dumbledore at least. The rest of the aurors, you're right… they'd either not believe or want Harry in protective custody. I have an emergency portkey." She took a nail file out of her pocket, enlarged it, and then tapped it with her wand twice before giving it to my father. "It will go to the Burrow in five minutes. Get Dumbledore, I'll bring over the others and Percy as soon as I can." Then Tonks hurried out the tent.

Dad said, "Come on, everyone. Pack up and grab your things." I hadn't unpacked anything so I just grabbed my bag that contained my nightshirt and clothes for tomorrow. Ron had Harry's bag, which I took from him so he could help him up. "Ok, time to go!' Dad announced when the nail file turned a shade of red for a split second. We all got a finger on it and after I blinked, we were back in our home.

After making sure we were ok, my mother announced it was all time for us to get to bed. Dad made a floo call to Hogwarts and said Dumbledore would be over in ten minutes. Harry looked like he was half asleep again. "I have to tell Dumbledore what happened," he protested.

Dad said, "Harry, Tonks would have been recording the conversation; all aurors have a device that allows them to do that for interrogations and the like. You get some rest, I'll talk to Dumbledore and whoever Tonks brings."


	6. Year 4, Part 2

***Ginny***

The next day I woke up to the smell of bacon. Half of me didn't really want to get up after last night, but I was hungry. After getting ready for the day, I went downstairs and instead of bumping into my mother, I saw Harry furiously working over the stove, whipping eggs while some bacon was frying in a separate pan. He had on a simple but form-fitting red shirt and a pair of blue jeans. Over it, he wore one of my dad's aprons. It was a bit tall on him, but it would have been either that or something of my mum's with yellow flowers.

"Hey," I said, walking up to his left side.

"Good morning, Gin. Your dad, mum, Bill, Charlie, and Percy, were up most of the night. The floo got a lot of work between Dumbledore and Tonks and a couple other aurors." He turned down the fire to to let things stay warm

"Were you spying on them without me?" I teased.

"No, I was asleep actually. Fred and George however… not so much. They woke me up around five and told me they thought I should have a report, so they are going to be out for most of the morning. I bumped into your dad and Percy when they were leaving this morning for work. He asked that we stay inside for today to not worry your mum. So, probably good the twins have a lie-in for a few hours."

I smiled. "Yeah, probably."

"But I was up at that point so I thought I'd make breakfast and let everyone else relax. Is Hermione up?" I wasn't expecting him to be so chipper.

"Yeah, she wanted to get cleaned up. I already did before going to bed last night."

"I'm not sure if Ron is more tired or hungry," he said as he handed me a couple rashers of bacon, some buttered toast, and the scrambled eggs.

"Since he's not down here, I guess tired must have somehow won out."

Harry took a plate for himself and we sat down at the counter. "Happy birthday, Gin."

I blushed. "I didn't want to say anything. If you had forgot after the night you had, I wouldn't have been too upset. But thanks, Harry."

We were both pretty hungry and attacked our breakfast in silence. Neither one of us liked talking while eating. I washed it down with a cup of apple juice from our orchard with Harry watching me.

"What? Bacon in my teeth?"

"No… your dad's study is empty and there's that letter of yours that I want to discuss privately. If that's still ok with what's happened in the last twelve hours."

My heart skipped two beats and I shook my head. I offered him my hand and he took it as led me through the hallway and shut the door. I sat down in a chair as he sat next to me and I tried to patiently listen.

"I'm not really sure if this is the right thing to do… I'm not sure about any of this with what's happened, but around five thirty, I decided that I'm not letting Voldemort control my life. He's already taken so much from me."

I nodded "Go on, Harry."

"You're really important to me and I talked a lot with Sirius about things… with your dad, it was just really too weird. Sirius told me that with our situation… not just me living here, but Tom… especially now that he's back… and me being me… and how special you are to me… something more official may be better all around."

Harry lost his train of thought for a little. "I guess it makes sense. Anyway, Sirius told me that a wizard is only as good as his word and that behind the formality, all the customs worth keeping are just promises wrapped up in decoration."

He paused, searching for what to say. "Ginny, you are an amazing witch. You are caring and pretty and so strong."

I blushed a little. "Thank you, Harry. That means a lot to me."

"And you're too good of a friend for me to not do this right. You're not someone that I just want to have fun with at school. I want to court you and make plans with you. I see myself having a future with you and if I ever decide differently, I promise I'll let you know. Not that that's going to happen."

"I think… I think I can accept that. I promise I'll do the same for you." It was a pledge I didn't ever intend to invoke.

Harry hesitantly asked, "So with all that, do you still want to be with me?"

I wasn't going to answer right away, however. "Before I say anything, I get to say a few things too." He waited. "Whether it's Draco, Peter, or Tom, you fight with me, not for me."

"Ok. No more being a prat."

"Right, Harry the prat is right out. Second… don't you dare take me for granted. I deserve to be treated special."

"You more than anyone."

"Third, you deserve to be treated special so don't try to stop me."

He nodded. "I'll try." We'd work on that one.

"Last… close your eyes."

He hesitantly did as I asked. My stomach was twisting and turning more than in any Quidditch match, but I wasn't going to let that stop me. I leaned forward and pressed my lips against his.

They were slightly rough but I could feel his strength behind them. I let him cover mine and I softly moved them a little under his pressure. Then I opened just a little and felt him hesitantly run the top of his tongue against my lips.

I couldn't feel anything else but the fire spreading across my body. Starting in my head then down my neck and chest to deep inside and then out to my fingertips. I finally stopped so I could breathe.

"Last… I expect plenty more of those from my boyfriend."

He grinned and said, "Definitely, luv." He stopped for a bit, a little scared.

I ran my hand across his cheek. "It's ok. You can say it if you want."

And then, probably the first time he said it to anyone in his life, he said it. "I love you, Ginny."

My heart was on fire just as much as from that kiss. "I love you too, Harry."

He stood up as he reached deep into his pockets. "And this is yours, for your birthday and as a token of my feelings. It didn't cost me a knut, so it's not excessive."

It was a white gold ring with an emerald stone shining in the middle. "It was in my vault, probably my mum's."

I stood up. With our height difference, I was eye-level with a little lower than his shoulder. Thankfully he wasn't growing as fast as Ron. "It's lovely."

"Just like you. I thought you would like the color." I gave him my right hand and he slipped it on my fourth finger and it automatically adjusted itself to my size.

I caught myself wishing for it to be balanced out on the other side, but I mentally shook my head. I didn't want to get ahead of myself. This was already more than I had ever expected. Luckily Harry decided to distract me in the best way possible. He had his arms wrapped around my back, pressed me close, and kissed me just as thoroughly as before.

I was so incredibly happy that I barely heard a few books hit the ground as I backed into one of my dad's shelves.

"What are you doing to my sister!"

Shite.

I turned around and saw Charlie staring at us in total shock. Suddenly he was pulling Harry away from me. My brother took him by the arm and quickly marched him into the kitchen. I ran behind him.

"Charlie!"

He roughly dumped Harry onto the closest dining room chair and then trained his wand on him. My oldest brother was sitting down eating some of the breakfast Harry had made but the twins and Ron and Hermione weren't down yet.

"Bill, get Mum," he yelled.

I jumped in front of Harry, hoping to fix this. "Charlie, what are you doing?"

"Ginny, you're probably very confused right now, but it's not your fault. Please move. I saw how Harry was attacking you. You don't need to stick up for him."

"You are the biggest..." I couldn't even put words to my thoughts and all that came out was a screech. "Argh! He was just kissing me! After I kissed him!"

Charlie reluctantly stowed away his wand, hopefully realizing that he hadn't been trying to assault me. "Are you sure he wasn't hurting you?"

Harry stood up and took my hand. I responded, "Yes, I'm fine. I was wonderful until about two minutes ago."

Finally, Harry spoke up. "This wasn't how I expected this to go. I'm sorry I scared you."

"Harry, you didn't do anything wrong." Last thing I wanted was for him to go back in his shell. I looked to Charlie and said, "Do you really think I'd let him do anything I didn't want?"

Charlie looked to the side and then back at us. "I just… I heard a crash from Dad's office and it looked like you were pinned up against the shelf. I wasn't expecting to walk in on you getting snogged like that for at least… well, I guess it's not something I've thought about. You're barely twelve. I don't think you're ready for that."

Ugh. "Charlie, what's today's date?"

"The eleventh… oh… Ginny, I'm really sorry."

Finally, Mum showed up. "A lot has happened since you've been here last, Charlie. A few weeks ago, Harry came with his godfather to ask your father to formally court your sister." She looked over at me. "I assume you said yes?"

I nodded, "Yes, I did. We both talked things over and I kissed him. My boyfriend was gentlemanly to kiss me back. I got a little carried away and scared Charlie. But we were just kissing." I emphasized 'just'.

The other four people in the house finally stumbled downstairs. Fred remarked, "We heard more noise downstairs than up."

George finished by stating, "Which is quite unusual as our mother will testify to."

Merlin, we should have just put an announcement in the Prophet. Harry said, "Ginny and I are a couple now."

Fred interrupted. "Was it before or after midnight?"

Harry looked confused by the question. "Uh, I asked her this morning."

George sighed, dug into his pocket, and placed a few knuts in Fred's outstretched hand.

"Anyway," I said, "Charlie walked in on us kissing and hence the commotion."

"Kissing?" Ron said, half in disgust.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Yes, Ron," I said. "It's like this." I turned around and planed a soft one on his lips in front of my entire family minus Dad and Percy. It was much quicker than our previous ones though, just a chaste peck. I knew Harry was dying of embarrassment already.

George whistled. Mum said, "Oh, that's quite enough. And Ginny, Harry… I'm not quite as agreeable to this as your father so try to practice some amount of decorum."

"Yes, ma'am," Harry said.

"We're done eating breakfast, so we were going to fly for a bit," I said.

"After chores."

We had to go feed the chickens and then weed and degnome the garden. I had a feeling my mum wanted to make sure we didn't have too much time to ourselves after the excitement in the morning. Harry was smiling as he spun around and chucked the last one into the yard.

I said, "I wonder if Neville knows of any gnome-repelling plants we could use."

"Where's the fun in that?"

I smiled and grabbed his dirty hand with mine. "The chickens don't bother me so much. I like the garden better. Honest work, Dad calls it."

"I like that." We started walking somewhat aimlessly towards the orchard. "I always hated slaving for the Dursley's. Even if it's not quite my own, helping family is different."

"Just let us help you too." I found a nice tree with some shade and sat down, bringing him close beside me. We spent most of the morning cuddling and trading kisses.

After my hair was thoroughly mussed up, Harry said, "We probably should stop, luv. And I imagine Charlie and your mum are about to send a search party after us."

"I'll try talking to him a bit."

"Ok. I don't want to be the cause of any sort of trouble with them."

We got a few comments at lunch, but Mum eventually shushed them. Afterwards, Ron asked, "Anyone fancy throwing the Quaffle around?"

Harry said, "You're birthday, Gin."

I nodded. "Sure, sounds like fun. I'll claim the right to pick teams though." We were all too competitive to just actually play catch. No disagreement from anyone. "How about… Ron and Bill as he Keepers and the twins and Charlie as the Chasers for one side. That leaves, I guess me and Harry on the other side. Hermione, can I get you on a broom today?"

"I think I'll referee."

"Good luck with that," Bill said. I grinned. It was all in fun, but it could get dirty. In the past, I had used my little sister eyes once or twice to get out of any punishment.

Ron was great as a Keeper and kept things even. Harry and I had the better broomsticks, so we stayed competitive and reached a score of two hundred first. He did get sandwiched several times between the twins, but Harry stole enough kisses from me to make it worth it.

Everyone sort of scattered after that. I was going to need to thank Hermione for distracting Ron for most of the day. I really wasn't worried about Dad. Harry and Sirius had talked with him and he was always trusting. Maybe too much sometimes. Harry and I were drinking some water when we noticed Charlie, standing there in front of us.

He seemed like he wanted to talk but didn't know how to begin. So I did it for him. "Harry would never hurt me, Charlie. I need you to believe that."

"I want to."

My boyfriend stood up and defended Charlie. "I know what it's like to be hurt. Bullied. Ganged up on for being different. My cousin and his parents… my childhood was beaten out of me. It took Ginny, your family, a year before feeling love stopped scaring me."

Charlie nodded. "It was still frightening the first years at school. The first couple years without You-Know-Who. Things almost got back to normal before Ginny was hurt."

"It wasn't anyone's fault but Lucius and Tom," I insisted. "Harry is going to take care of me and I him. Always."

Charlie smiled and some weight came off his shoulder. "Then I won't stand in your way. Harry, welcome to the family." They shook hands and then spent some time swapping stories of their best Snitch catches.

Everything was fairly calm by the time Dad and Percy came home. Between the chores and flying and snogging and deep conversations, I was well spent. After supper, we sat down in the living room and Dad turned on the Wizarding Wireless Network; they were broadcasting a live concert of the Weird Sisters. I was leaning into Harry's chest and he had his right arm around my shoulders.

I eventually felt a kiss on my cheek. "Gin, time to go to bed." I looked over at the clock that told the time and realized I had drifted off for several minutes. This felt just fine here with his arms around me, but I wasn't going to push my luck more today. I smiled at Harry and nodded.

I gave all my brothers and parents a hug and thanked them for what would be one of my most memorable and happiest birthdays ever. I held Harry's hand all the way up to the top of the stairs. I kissed him one more time. "Harry… dear, thanks. For everything. I really do love you."

"I love you too, Gin. I'm glad I could make you happy. You've done that for me every day this last year."

 ***Arthur***

Charlie, Molly, and I apparated to the front door of an old house that looked like it hadn't been updated since the Victorian period. The house itself was much older, but that was the last time the Blacks had done renovations on Number 12 Grimmauld Place.

Once we both could see the house I subtly burned the scrap of parchment that Dumbledore had given us to get passed the charm.

An ancient and half-crazed house elf met us at the door. "Three Weasleys. Blood traitors. Master Sirius wants you in the dining room, but his mother, my old mistress would not be pleased, no she wouldn't. The other Weasley, that smells like goblin, is already here."

Bill had moved into his own flat near Diagon Alley a week ago, right after Ginny's birthday. "Umm… thanks." I tried to be polite.

Besides my son, Dumbledore, Remus and Sirius were there along with three aurors, Kingsley, Tonks, and Alastor 'Mad-Eye' Moody. And Snape, who was sitting as far away from Sirius as he could. "Good evening," the headmaster said. "Welcome to the Order of the Phoenix."

We took our seats around an ancient oak table. Dumbledore continued, "I'd like to stress that anything that is said here doesn't leave this room. We may learn things that could be dangerous to the effort or others if they became public." He then looked at me. "And we also need to be careful with what Harry and his friends learn as well, especially considering they haven't any experience with occlumency. I'd like to thank Sirius for volunteering his house as headquarters and for helping to find some of our efforts."

"Anything I can do," he humbly said.

"And so let's begin. First, Sirius, Lupin, please tell us what you discovered.'

Remus Lupin took lead in the conversation. "Our plan had been to find Peter Pettigrew before he could cause more trouble, but after the events after the World Cup, it seems we were too late. After being told of Harry's visions, we wanted to determine their nature… if he was seeing them as they happened or they were premonitions or figments of his imagination brought out by stress."

Sirius said, "And as I suspected, Harry seems to have moments where he is experiencing the world through Voldemort's eyes. Based on his descriptions and research of the spells that could have been used to regenerate his body, we decided to visit the gravesite where Voldemort's father was buried. It was cleaned up but there was evidence of very powerful magic being practiced there recently."

Lupin added, "We also found blood splatters on the ground. Bill helped with the necessary blood charms, and we are sure it was Fudge's. He is still missing and so we believe he was killed and the rest of Harry's report is accurate."

Dumbledore looked over to Snape. "Severus, you have been busy as of late. What have you learned?"

He cleared his throat and said in his usual slow and methodical voice, "The mark on my arm did change on the night of the tenth. It was the sign of when the dark lord was summoning his followers. Dumbledore warned me that this may happen, but it was not expected so soon. When I arrived, I saw him regenerated, appearing to be close if not exactly the same as thirteen years ago. Peter and Lucius were there, along with Barty Crouch Junior." Who was supposed to be dead. "And the minister was on the ground dead."

Sirius yelled. "Why didn't you bloody say something as soon as it happened, you wanker? You made us waste a week of time."

Severus was unflappable. "It does us no good if Potter's visions or my reports are discovered if the order acts on information it shouldn't have. I'm already barely trusted after my years of teaching under Dumbledore. If every secret I'm told results in opposing action… well, I would cease to be useful."

Sirius wasn't satisfied. "But if you don't tell us anything that we don't already know, you might as well not be helping."

Dumbledore interrupted. "There are too many moving parts at the moment and we are still groping around in the dark. When it is time, Severus will tell us what we need to know."

I spoke up, "And the minister?"

Kingsley said, "I think soon enough, everyone will realize that he is either dead or incapacitated. The Wizengamot is scheduled to meet in September. When he doesn't show, his seat will most likely be considered vacant and a vote called for a replacement."

Severus went back to his report. "Peter Pettigrew was tasked with retrieving Potter for the resurrection ritual, but was obviously unable to succeed. The dark lord especially wanted to use his blood as a way to get through some of the blood protections Lily gave him. However, he still wishes to personally kill Potter, due to the prophecy."

"Which we are fated to follow." Dumbledore expounded. "Even if it wasn't destiny, Voldemort believes it so it has become the future. Miss Weasley was the recipient of a second foretelling that I think may be related, but I am still trying to determine its meaning."

This apparently was new to Snape. "A second prophecy? Related to Potter and the dark lord?"

"Well, definitely dealing with Voldemort but it was even more abstract than the first. Which likely means it is more powerful. Who or what it deals with is a mystery. Until that's been resolved, I'd rather keep its contents undisclosed."

Snape then said, "Very well. However, I'm going to have to give up something valuable to assuage doubts being held about me. If not the new prophecy, something else."

"You will need to delay that as long as possible, hopefully something will present itself. In the meantime, is there any other business?"

Charlie spoke up. "I'm heading back towards the dragon reserve tomorrow. I'll take a few days to meet up with your contacts on the continent. Then I'll be back in October for the tournament."

Moody decided to talk for the first time tonight. "Dumbledore, do you still need me to teach?"

"I have some other options and I think you'll be more valuable harassing some of the Death Eaters."

"I think I'll enjoy that more anyhow," he responded in his gruff voice."

There were a few more other matters to discuss and the meeting ended about an hour later. As we got up to leave, Dumbledore called us out. "Arthur, Molly, a quick word, if you will."

After the others shuffled out, he said, "I've been asking Horace Slughorn, your old professor, to come out of retirement. I think he will be useful at the school this year and he also has some information that I will need time to convince him to share. He hasn't committed yet, but I thought that if I could bring a potential student along, that may help. So, I was wondering if I could borrow Harry or Ginny tomorrow after supper for the evening."

The 'or' would be an issue. Since her birthday, my daughter and her boyfriend were rarely apart for more than required by basic privacy issues. "Actually, how about both of them go with you?" I was curious why he didn't ask about any of the four other Hogwarts students under my roof but Dumbledore hadn't seemed to be in a explaining-himself mood lately.

"That would be fine. I'll be by around six thirty."

After that, Charlie, Molly, and I apparated near the Burrow and walked in. It was about eleven.

Percy was sitting in the living room reading a ministry publication. My wife asked, "Everything ok?"

"Yes, mother. I did receive an owl this evening that Mr. Crouch was returning to work tomorrow, which is a relief. I also found an advertisement for a flat near the ministry that is in my means, so I'll visit it after work tomorrow."

"And the kids?" I added.

"Fred and George didn't destroy the house, not for lack of trying. The younger four were reading in Ron's room." My youngest son had insisted as of late that when they all hung out, that it be in his room rather than either of the upstairs bedrooms. "They retired about twenty minutes ago. I'm going to go to my room now, I'll need my rest if I end up moving tomorrow."

After Percy and Charlie both went to bed, Molly quietly crept up the stairs. I wanted to just get to bed. I shook my head for a moment and then followed her. Once she reached the top level, she slowly cracked open Ginny's door to make sure that the bedrooms all had their proper occupants. She closed it and then we made the way back to our bedroom.

As we lay down, I asked her, "When do we tell Harry about the first prophecy? Ginny told him about the second."

"I don't know, Arthur. He already knows that You-Know-Who is after him, so I don't know if there's any gain to tell him that he's the one that is meant to defeat him. I think Ginny's prophecy has to be related to him, it's too much a coincidence otherwise."

"Though if they're not," I said while stroking her hair, "maybe it cancels out the first? I'm not sure if anyone can be certain, not even Dumbledore."

"Let's give them the year. A year for him to figure things out, a year for Harry and Ginny and Ron and Hermione to be kids. He's not ready to go looking for You-Know-Who anyway."

I agreed. "Ok. One year." After a few minutes of silence, I said, "And dear, are you planning to check on them every night they're not in school?"

My wife whispered, "I know, Arthur… and they haven't given me any reason to worry. It's just… she's still my little girl."

"Yes, Mollywobbles. I know I'd have gotten caught a few times if I was in the same situation."

"I do remember the summer before our seventh year… a certain brash boy flying up on a broomstick to my window…"

"I missed you. And you were irresistible. You still are."

She grinned and nibbled on my ear for a moment. I decided that I wasn't that tired after all.

 ***Ginny***

Harry had disappeared on me about three in the afternoon, claiming he had some things to do in the house. We had gone to Diagon Alley the day before, so Hermione was busy, making it a point to read all her textbooks before school started. Which left Ron and I outside on the ground, practicing our spellcasting aim on Ron's targets, enjoying one of the last days of the summer.

"This is nice," I said.

"What?"

"Well, if you remember, this was how it was for two years. You and me."

"Yeah."

I loosed three shots in quick order and two converged on the same target, the third missing to the right by an inch. The practice was really helping. "Ever wish things were still simple?"

"I guess. If I wanted simple, I should have made friends with Neville instead of Harry, I suppose. Not-simple seems to follow him. Or he follows it." Two shots from him, both connecting.

I didn't feel like arguing with him on that. Harry could stick up for himself if needed. "Well, you've been a good friend. I am trying to not take up all of his time."

He rolled his eyes at me and shook his head. "He'd be useless by this point if you weren't courting him anyway. Not the same bloke at all those first two weeks of summer. I'm not thrilled walking in on my best mate snogging my little sister, but something I have to learn to live with."

"You know, you might feel differently if you were with someone… I could probably get you set up with one of the other girls in my dorm."

"No, thank you," he said adamantly. "If," with a big accent on the if, "if, I wanted to, I'm sure I could find someone without your help. And I'm fine with just being by myself for now." He lowered his wand for a moment. "Is it time to eat yet? If not, I'm getting a snack."

We walked back towards the house and then Ron almost ran headfirst into Harry who was walking onto the porch, holding a basket. "'Scuse me, Harry," he said and headed inside.

Harry looked at me, his eyes shifting until I knew he had swept up and down my body. I wasn't wearing anything special, just a pair of shorts and a green tee. When some of the other boys stared at me like that last year, I quickly felt uncomfortable or like a piece of beefsteak. Harry… I could just feel the caring in his eyes. Every time he kissed me, he was giving me his love, not taking anything from me.

Plus, I let my eyes rake across his body once or twice as well.

He said, "I haven't taken you on a proper date yet and your parents won't let us leave the Burrow by ourselves with a madman after me."

"At least they signed our Hogsmeade slips." Dad and Mum finally gave in on that. It would've been either let us go or not let any of us go, and then they'd have had a full-scale riot on their hands. And we would have gone anyway.

"Yeah. Well, that's still a bit aways. I made a picnic, if you want. Just some ham sandwiches and a treacle tart to share."

I wove my arm around his free hand. "Sounds great. Plus, I think Ron is going to eat our share of whatever Mum's cooking."

He smiled and we found a tree and a proper blanket. After we polished off the sandwiches and the pumpkin juice Harry said, "You know why this is loads better than Valentines?"

"The temperature?"

"Well, yes."

"No dementors?"

"That too."

"What else?"

"I can do this now." And with that, he leaned over and gave me a short kiss.

"That does make things a tad better. Plus, we have a tart this time," I teased.

We leaned against the tree, Harry's hands slowly running through my hair. Sometimes just being was more than enough. I almost fell asleep after the workout with Ron earlier. "Gin, probably time we get back." Right. Dumbledore wanted us to visit a potential professor with him.

As luck had it, he was stepping through the floo right when we finished putting away the dishes we'd used and the basket. The headmaster said, "Thank you for your help again. Molly, I'll make sure to have them back before too late."

"Of course. Listen to Dumbledore, you two, and behave yourselves."

There was a lot of warning about behaving lately.

Dumbledore had temporarily connected our floo with our destination. He went first, then me. I made sure to get out of the way quickly for Harry, who usually wound up on the ground after stepping through the flames. Today was no different. I suppressed a giggle and then noticed an old but not ancient man, rotund, but with a cunning look on his face that I noticed despite the large cheeks and chins.

"Horace, thanks for letting me visit. I happened to have a couple students with me that needed a few hours out, I hope you don't mind I brought them. This is Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley. Children, this is Horace Slughorn, he would have been a professor when both your parents were there."

My boyfriend received Slughorn's instance attention as usual. "Harry Potter, my, it is an honor to meet you."

He shook his hand. "Thank you, sir."

Dumbledore interrupted, "If you would be so kind to pardon me, I do find myself needing to use the loo."

Horace nodded and waved him off, "First door on the right."

I looked around. We seemed to be in a relatively small flat with no sign of a woman or young children living there. A confirmed bachelor with modest means. However, there were a few trinkets scattered around that were irreplaceable. Also a signed picture of my favorite (well, professional at least) Quidditch player, Gwenog Jones. Several pictures of him and previous ministers of magic.

"And you are Arthur Weasley and Molly Prewitt's daughter?"

I smiled and practiced my manners. "Yes, sir."

"I never knew them very well. They seemed to be good kids, even with your dad taking Muggle Studies over Potions." He paused. "James Potter and Lily Evans, on the other hand… Lily was one of my most gifted students, even with being muggleborn."

Harry tried to not glare at him with the backhanded comment, but I could tell he was hiding some feelings with that. "I don't think that's terribly surprising. Other than Ginny, the brightest in our class is a friend of mine who is muggleborn."

Suddenly, I noticed a small rug on the wall with a snake on it. He must have noticed my glance. "Yes, I was head of Slytherin House when I taught, but don't hold that against me. Most of us did not turn into Death Eaters."

I said, "My father always said to take a person for who they are, not what group they are in."

Horace smiled, "Usually wise words."

I slipped my hand into Harry's. He was very sensitive about his mum. Then Slughorn looked at us like he hadn't seen us before. "Merlin, I'm not sure why I didn't see it before." He found an album on a bookshelf that was marked as the late seventies. Flipping through a few pages, he brought out a picture. Looking at Harry and then me, he said "Other than your eyes and the precise shade of your hair, you look remarkably like James and Lily. Like father, like son, I suppose, though your parents took a few more years."

I did notice some resemblance. Mrs. Potter didn't have my freckles and I didn't have her height, but in a dark room, we could have passed for them.

At that moment, Dumbledore reappeared. "I do apologize for taking too much of your time as of late. If you still are set on declining my offer, we should take our leave. Come along, Mr. Potter, Miss Weasley."

Horace sighed. "I can see what you're did, Albus, and it worked. I'll be there day after tomorrow to get ready for next term."

I wasn't exactly sure what had happened, but the headmaster did seem pleased. We were soon back home. Dad was in the living room waiting for us. "How did it go?"

"Your children were just what I needed. Horace agreed to come teach this next year." He turned to us. "What did you think of him?"

Harry said, "Well, he's definitely a Slytherin. He also seemed to be very interested in students' private lives more than most professors."

Dumbledore nodded, "Well, he does have his favourites and at one point, his office was almost a marketplace for favours between different students and even ministry employees. A recommendation here, a nudge for an appointment there. Not that he's a bad person and I want to make sure that you give him the respect due a professor. But he likely will take an interest in you, Harry, so I wanted to give you fair warning. You may find that even if you don't care for someone, they may still be very helpful."

It was looking like this next year would be quite interesting.


	7. Year 4, Part 3

***Ginny***

The trip to Hogwarts was over too soon. I had to admit that I almost missed Percy fussing over the first and second years to get dressed in time. I spent most of the ride against Harry's shoulder, his arm around me. Fred and George were demonstrating a few of their inventions in the back and it looked like they were going to run wild this year. They had rarely done anything bad enough for last year's Head Boy to get backup involved. Detentions they could deal with. Howlers from Mum were far worse.

I heard Hagrid yell out for the first years to follow him on the boat. I boarded a horseless carriage with my youngest brother, Hermione, and of course my Harry. He looked a little concerned. "What is it?" I asked gently.

He said, "Tom is somewhere out there. Sometime, he's going to try to come here."

I slowly nodded. "We'll need to get ready."

Ron chimed in. "This is kind of our halfway point. Fourth time going to Hogwarts. There will only be three more."

Harry softly said. "Maybe."

Hermione added, "Less than two years until OWLs!" She sounded almost excited.

All of us laughed. "Was that a joke?" Ron said.

"Maybe. I've been in the Burrow for the better part of a month. Plus, Harry needed cheering up, and it's either that or Ginny do something you don't want to see."

I stuck my tongue out at the two of them for a second before hopping in Harry's lap. Ron covered his face. "Ick!" I wasn't sure all the time if he was teasing or not.

I wasn't paying attention as the carriage abruptly stopped and I fell forward, tumbling to the floor. I picked myself up, took Harry's hand, and put my feet firmly on the Scottish ground.

We received a few stares as we walked into the Great Hall. After the sorting, Dumbledore said a few customary words but let us eat before the real speech began.

The main entree was roasted chicken. I tucked into a thigh, while Harry ate a breast, and Ron had a drumstick in each hand. After that and some potatoes and carrots, I was ready for a kip. Dumbledore rose and waited for the student body to quiet. I turned to face him and leaned back into Harry, who scooted forward and wrapped his arms around my waist.

Our headmaster began. "Again, welcome to all our returning pupils, new students and our faculty and staff. Among those, we have a new member. I'd like to introduce, returning from retirement for the year, Professor Horace Slughorn, a master of potions."

Potions?! I had assumed he was taking Professor Lupin's place. Plus, if he was teaching potions, that would mean….

"And Professor Snape has agreed to transfer to teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts." Snape had a smile on his face that I had never seen before.

Harry said "No, he can't...", just whispering loud enough for me to hear.

Ron said, "Well, at least it'll last just one year, unless the jinx is lifted."

Hermione looked at him, puzzled.

"You know, the jinx on the Defense position."

She shushed him. "Professor Dumbledore is still talking."

I then heard the headmaster say, "Also, the House Quidditch Cup will be suspended for the year."

Fred and George stood up. "You're joking!" They both yelled rather loudly. I sat up and paid more attention.

Dumbledore paused. "No, Mr. Weasleys, I'm not joking, though I did hear one about a House Elf and a Hippogriff walking into a tavern…. But I digress. The reason why we will be forgoing Quidditch this year is so that we can concentrate on hosting an event that has not been hosted in generations, the Tri-Wizard Cup."

He paused for gasps and general rumblings from the students. "For those of you unaware, the Tri-Wizard Cup is a competition between the three largest magical schools in Europe, Hogwarts, Durmstrang, and Beauxbatons. An impartial judge will choose a champion from each school that will engage in three tasks that will test their magical skills, knowledge, and daring. The winner will be rewarded with fame, honor, and a thousand galleons." That got everyone's attention.

The headmaster continued. "But those of you considering entering should know that this is not to be done lightly, and those chosen will be magically bound to participate. We will attempt to minimize the chances of death or dismemberment by only allowing fully qualified wizards or witches, those who have come of age. Representatives of the other schools will be arriving after supper tomorrow and the submission for the champions will start that evening and last until the following day's dinner."

At that, he dismissed us all. We made our way towards the Gryffindor tower. "Well, I'm disappointed," I said.

Harry said, "Yeah. I was hoping to have a chance to make up for last year's final match…"

Ron added, "I was even thinking of trying out for Keeper!"

"Well," I added, "you just have an extra year of practice, I guess."

Fred said, "I can't believe we aren't going to be allowed to try! We have barely half a year until seventeen."

"I know, Gred," said the other twin. "Fame and honor! And galleons!"

"There has to be a way…." Both of them had the smirk on their face indicating I needed to scoot out of the way if I didn't want to get caught up in something.

Harry and I lingered behind for a moment. "No snitch catching this year," he said.

"Nope."

"I can try catching you."

"I'm a lot harder to grab hold of than a snitch."

"Better tasting, though." He blushed in spite of himself and I felt the heat rise to my face as well. I gave him a small peck. "Good night, Gin… luv."

"Good night, dear."

I felt like I floated up to my room. Hermione, Parvati, and Lavender were unpacking. The last one stopped when I walked in.

Lavender jumped into her bed, sitting up with her legs crossed. "So… you and Harry."

I let out a nonverbal grumble. Time for the Hogwarts rumour mill. "Yes, we've been dating for a few weeks."

"And you sleep in the same house with him?"

I figured if I was going to be interrogated, I might as well enjoy it. "Actually, his bedroom is right next to mine." Lavender could have caught flies in her mouth.

Hermione interrupted, "Except I was sleeping in her room all last month and she's only thirteen so go find something else perverted to think about."

Parvati noisily closed her chest and looked up at me. "I was just surprised to hear you had just started dating. I assumed you two were together last year."

"We were taking it slow."

"Looks like you aren't now…" Lavender said.

"Excuse me?"

My bush-haired friend rolled her eyes. "Honestly, you were practically in his lap during Dumbledore's speech. I'm surprised he didn't stop just to deduct points from you."

"We weren't doing anything. And actually, I'm keeping him out of trouble. No crashing cars into trees in a while. Does it bother you?"

"Not me," Parvati said softly. "But Ron was venting under his breath to Dean. I don't think he's terribly pleased."

That was a bit surprising and disappointing. If that was true, he had been doing a good job of hiding it. Though I wasn't going to stop being affectionate just because he had the emotional maturity of a first year.

The next morning, we had both Defense Against the Dark Arts with Slytherin after breakfast and Potions with Ravenclaw after that before Transformation. I took a seat in the Defense room on the left row, towards the middle and Harry slinked behind me. We took turns in different classes of who got to see whom. This had been his favorite class at school last year and he was already expecting it to be his worse. Snape didn't disappoint.

The professor walked in and briskly walked to the front, saying, "Turn to page ten in your books. We are going to have to spend the first few weeks in remedial training, considering the poor quality of your last three teachers."

Harry's mouth started talking before his brain could catch up. "The last one was brilliant." I looked back and stared at him.

"Ten points from Gryffindor, Mr. Potter, for talking out of turn. Another five due to Miss Weasley's being unable to keep her eyes facing forward." I turned around and sunk in my desk. "If I can continue without further interruption, I don't think highly of a Defense teacher who was unable or unwilling to educate his class enough to realize he was a werewolf."

There was a sudden uproar. Most of our classmates hadn't known and it certainly wasn't a polite thing to say. Snape gave a little grin mixed with a snarl.

"My point exactly. And so we are going to begin with basic curses and shields. Again."

And so despite the revelation, the class became quite boring, especially for us with the extra practice over the summer. We four performed very well and would have more than made up the earlier loss in points with any other teacher.

Professor Slughorn was interesting and a much better teacher, even if I didn't care for some of his personality. Rather than jump straight into an assignment, he discussed the theory behind the potion first — why certain ingredients were used and why they were blended in a particular order. It helped me with the assignment and Harry was so much more relaxed he couldn't help but do better.

One evening a few weeks into term, I nearly bumped into Percy before supper. "What are you doing here?" I asked.

He looked at me, annoyed, and said, "If you must know, Mr. Crouch is not quite recovered from his injuries at the Cup and asked me to attend today in his stead. Now, I must be going, I have some adults I need to talk to." I stood there wondering at the brush-off. Percy and I had never been terribly close, but this...

Whatever. Harry and Ron finally came down and we all all sat near Hermione. After supper, Dumbledore stood up and said, "Attention, everyone. I've just been informed that our guests have arrived. From regions unknown on the continent, Professor Karkaroff and the students of Durmstrang!"

Two dozen or so students dressed in furred red cloaks walked through the door. They must not have brought all the students, only those of age or a portion of them. My eyes glanced back to the lead student, who looked awful like…

Ron exclaimed, "That's Viktor Krum! I didn't know he's still a student!"

I took another closer look at the student as he and his classmates took a seat at a table Dumbledore had conjured. My brother was right. Perfect match for the latest cover of Lavender's "Teen Witch Weekly."

Before anyone could say anything, the headmaster announced, "And Madame Maxime and the students of Beauxbatons Academy." A group of students dressed in light blue appeared, led by an older woman who was as tall as Hagrid. The last girl had silvery hair and was beyond gorgeous. Half the male students were staring, but Harry kept his eyes on me. The girl didn't seem to like the attention, nor did her peers.

The three headmasters exchanged pleasantries and each gave a few words to the student bodies about encouraging unity between our different communities and the like. Then Percy produced an ornate silver and rather large goblet.

Dumbledore waved his wand over it and an eerie purple fire emerged. He explained, "This goblet will be lit for twenty-four hours, during which those eligible may submit their names. I've drawn an Age Line to keep anyone underage from entering. Tomorrow evening, we will see who the goblet deems to be most worthy of each school. Good night."

The next morning, the goblet was placed near the door and there was a scrum of students around it. Harry and I went over to have a look. The twins were closest to the goblet. "Durmstrang and Beauxbatons all enter?" I asked.

"Near as we can tell, guess they only brought students who were eligible," said Lee Jordan. "Most of Gryffindor seventh years, Cedric Diggory, and a couple of the Slytherins. I didn't see anyone from Ravenclaw, but they could have done it earlier."

I don't know what I'd do if any of those slimy snakes were chosen to represent Hogwarts.

"Anyone looking?" Fred asked.

Jordan said, "No, and there's enough of a crowd they wouldn't notice."

"Five drops should do it," George said. He took out an eyedropper and counted out the number of drops into two vials. He and George each downed the milky-white potion and walked towards the goblet.

Blam! A light flashed from the air and my brothers flew backwards. And now they possessed beards that would be the envy of Father Christmas.

Dumbledore stood up and said from across the hall, "Mr. Weasley and Mr. Weasley, Madam Pomfrey has the antidote for your current affliction. I'm afraid the beards will continuously grow until they are treated."

Fred and George had a great laugh out of it and then proudly strode out of the room.

We had Divination, Magical Creatures, and Magical History after that. I was sorely tempted to drop Divination after how cocked-up the homework was, but after the one real prophecy, I felt that I had to stay.

Classes were really a wash anyway as most of us were thinking about the tournament. Finally it was supper and then the selection.

The leaders of the three schools stood around the goblet, which had been brought to the head table. Percy and Mr. Bagman were standing off to the side supervising. The goblet's fire grew dim for a minute and then flared green and a single slip of paper flew out. Karkaroff caught it and he said, "From Durmstrang, Viktor Krum!"

Least surprising announcement of the year. Krum was directed to an anteroom.

A yellow flare and a piece of paper shot toward Dumbledore. "For Hogwarts, Mr. Cedric Diggory." The Hufflepuffs went wild as he stood and followed Krum. At least it wasn't a Slytherin.

Another minute and a blue flame produced the Beauxbatons' entry. "Fleur Delacour," said Madame Maxime. The outcast beauty stood up and quietly made her way out.

Dumbledore and the other heads started walking towards the room where the champions were waiting. Suddenly, the goblet flared red and spat out a final name before its flame died. The paper hung in the air for a moment and then Dumbledore snatched it out of the air.

"Harry Potter." Time stopped and the room was silent.

I grabbed my boyfriend's hand tightly, wishing from my very core the last minute was a daydream. Dumbledore beckoned for him and he stood up, letting go of me. "I'll be right back, Gin," he whispered.

Our headmaster put a gentle hand over his shoulder and they went into the back room. McGonagall announced the rest of us were dismissed to our rooms.

Ron went straight to his dorm, stomping his feet, while Hermione and I nervously waited in the increasingly empty Common Room. Harry finally entered and slumped down on a sofa.

I sat next to him and held onto him. "What did they say? They can't make you participate."

He let out a sarcastic chuckle. "Apparently they can. The Durmstrang and Beauxbatons teachers are mad as hell, thinking I cheated. Dumbledore believes me and Snape insisted I wasn't talented enough to fool the goblet. But he probably just wanted a chance for a put-down. Do you… do you believe that I didn't enter?"

I let go, a bit hurt that he had to ask. "Dear, of course. You shouldn't have to ask."

"I'm know, I'm sorry, it's just been a rough night." I then leaned into him so he could hold me, which usually calmed him and me.

Hermione added, "I believe you too. Heaven knows you don't need the money or the attention or the danger… did they tell you what the first task is?"

"No, part of the test is to see how we handle being surprised, I guess."

"Well, they must have more safeguards than before. I did some reading yesterday and on average, at least every other tournament, someone lost a limb or their life." She paused. 'Harry, you don't think that was someone's plan…"

Her words sank like a stone. This seemed like a rather roundabout way to do it, but considering his past. Was someone trying to hurt Harry? Besides the obvious… Tom wouldn't be so patient. I said mostly for my own benefit, "No use worrying about that. We'll help you train. To keep you safe and you may as well do your best if you're stuck with this."

He finally smiled and said, "Thanks Gin. That'll help."

"I finally got you and I'm not letting go." With that, he leaned in and slowly put his lips on mine. He soon had one of his hands tangled up in my hair and Hermione had to clear her throat a few times before we stopped.

After Harry broke away, I saw Ron staring at us. "I was going to give you a chance to explain."

"Ron," he said, "I didn't…"

"You didn't have time to take your tongue out of my sister's mouth to tell me how you got your name in there? I would have loved the chance to try!"

I stood up, "Ron, you're being a crude git. And Harry didn't sneak his name in. He's been with me anytime he hasn't been in his dorm."

"So you're covering for him. Figures. I guess you both got what you wanted." And with that he stormed back off to the boys' dorm.

It was a good thing too, since the next word out of his mouth would have been followed by slugs or bats.

We were pretty speechless following Ron's outburst. A few minutes later, Harry said, "I need to write Sirius and your dad about all this and then I'll get some sleep. I'll see you both tomorrow." I wanted him to stay but sometimes he needed his space. I gave him a tight squeeze and then let him go.

 ***Arthur***

I was just restarting my desk work after lunch when Sirius stormed into my office. I was expecting the interruption after hearing from Percy what had happened the night before last at the Tournament Selection. "Arthur, I just got a letter from Harry. Somehow he ended up in the Tri-Wizard contest!"

He shoved the letter in my face. "Yes, Percy was there and he told me. I would have floo-called but I didn't know how to find you and I figured Harry would write so I wanted to give him the opportunity." I scanned through the letter. It was the same as he had sent me, except it also had some additional information about how his classes had been. Well, how Defense had gone at least. "Did you want to talk to Dumbledore?"

"He'll, yes. I just sent him a message. I needed to report to him regarding Order business anyway."

I paused for a moment. "You don't know the half of it. I have a good idea of what the first task is."

When I told him, he nearly exploded. A moment later, a phoenix patronus appeared. "My schedule is free for the next half hour. I've connected my office to the floo network for the next five minutes, if you wish to meet."

I volunteered, "I'd like to come too."

"You probably sure. Make sure I don't try to curse the old man. And we'll have to make sure you can get ahold of me if anything else comes up."

We stepped through the fireplace and into Dumbledore's office, where he was sitting at his desk. "Welcome, gentleman. I assume this is in regards to the happened with the tournament goblet?"

Sirius didn't feel like sitting. "You bet your beard it does. The goblet isn't supposed to allow someone to enter a third party's name and you said you drew an age line, so what the bloody hell happened?"

Sirius usually didn't swear in front of the headmaster. He responded, "I wish I knew. Someone very skilled was able to confuse it into allowing the name entry and likely also under an imaginary fourth school so Harry was guaranteed to be picked. My age line did work, as Fred and George Weasley can attest to."

"So it has to be some adult, with access to the school, that wanted Harry in."

"I believe so."

"There's no way he's been taught anything that is going to help him fight those beasts!"

Dumbledore looked at me. "Charlie?"

"Yes, he let slip enough that it was pretty easy to figure out. I doubt he thought it was an issue considering I didn't have any children at Hogwarts that should have been able to enter."

Sirius demanded, "Harry needs to know so he can prepare. It's not like he wanted this."

The headmaster said, "I don't think you outright telling him is a good idea; he needs to have some confidence going into the competition. I will arrange it so he discovers what he needs to know. Cheating's a time-honored part of the tournament anyway."

Couldn't he ever just say yes? "Good. We also need to figure out who entered Harry's name," I added.

"I am attempting to determine this person's identity but have so far been unsuccessful."

Sirius waved it off. "Fine, I guess there's little you can do about that right now short of shutting down the school. However, I want something done about Snape. Have you taken a look at how he's been treating Harry?"

"I've never expected them to be friends."

I spoke up. "It's far worse than that. Harry and Ginny have both gotten points taken off during each class and he's given them zeroes on every assignment. In the class that's been Harry's best subject every year until now."

Sirius added, "Meanwhile, they are both excelling in Potions, where Harry struggled the last three years. I have to believe you know this, Dumbledore. Why is he not sacked yet? He's obviously a rubbish teacher."

He took off his half-moon glasses and rubbed his eyes before replacing them. "I wish I could help. If it was any other teacher, I would have asked for his resignation already. But I need to keep him satisfied and on the right side so he will help when the time is right."

"Why do you even think he's really on our side?"

"That will have to remain between him and me. I gave him my word on this."

We weren't getting anywhere. Sirius looked at me and I nodded. He said, "If we aren't happy, I will take up personal residence in Hogsmeade to keep a permanent eye on Snivellus or we pull Harry and Ginny and Ron out of school and I'll pay for private tutors."

"I sincerely hope it doesn't come to that. I'm merely doing what is best for our side."

"For the greater good," I muttered. It was a bit of a low blow.

Dumbledore stared at me for a moment. My wife's aunt knew enough of his past that he didn't like to advertise. I added, "If Harry is supposed to be the one that defeats You-Know-Who, doesn't he need every minute of training he can get? And Ginny and Ron aren't going to let him go on his own."

Dumbledore finally relented. "I'll take a closer look into the Defense class and I'll tutor your children personally if it comes to that."

"Thank you," said Sirius. "I don't really enjoy arguing with you, but I was kept from doing my duty for James for over ten years and he's my only concern."

We nodded and the unpleasant meeting was soon over. The next time we saw each other was a week late at an event almost equally unpleasant — the Wizengamot election of a new minister.

Nominations had been made a week before. The ballot was an exercise in chaos. With the out-of-cycle election, several long shots had thrown their hat in. They only needed a seconded motion to be entered.

First was Lucius Malfoy. I was too scared to even consider that prospect. The other chief option was Rufus Scrimgeour, head of the auror department He at least wasn't a Death Eater, but Tonks had told me he had a hard time supporting any idea that he couldn't claim as his own. Dumbledore had been nominated, as usual, but declined.

Short speeches were customary but I had a hard time listening as I feared it would come down either way to simple maths. Had Lucius spent enough money to buy the required votes?

After the first round of votes, it was clear he hadn't or had not been trying. Or that most of the Wizengamot memi were glad to take his money but did not want the bully in charge. Too many voters had half-blood relations. Most of his supporters were ones that I suspected had branded family members.

Scrimgeour's votes split with some other more traditional families' candidates and after four rounds of voting, support had solidified around the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Amelia Bones. It was close but she was the second choice for most of those that were not blood-purists. The coalition prevailed and she finally won a majority.

She was no one's first choice but she had as few enemies as one could manage to obtain in her position.

I would leave it to Dumbledore to decide when to tell her that the job was going to be more difficult and dangerous than she ever had imagined.

 ***Ginny***

It had been a month since the tournament selection and nothing much had changed. Well, Snape had finally stopped taking points off Harry and me for smiling or breathing and was doing an effective job of ignoring us. Ron wasn't talking to Harry or me. It was mainly Harry he wasn't talking to, to be honest, but I wasn't going to treat my brother better than he was treating my boyfriend. Hermione tried playing the peacemaker and messenger since she was trying to stay friends with all of us, but it wasn't helping.

And Malfoy and the rest of the Slytherins had for the first time ever became very vocal in their support for a Hufflepuff. They all were wearing buttons that said "Support Cedric Diggory." With a tap of a wand and no teacher around, it changed to "Potter Stinks."

Harry was at his breaking point with it. "The next time I see one of those stupid buttons…"

I agreed, but Hermione tried keeping the peace. "Harry, temper, temper."

He just glared at her. "He'll deserve it."

"Yes, but if you get detention, that's going to cut into your time Ginny…"

I blushed. "She has a point."

"Fine."

We started walking to our next useless class, Defense with the Slytherins. Ron was straggling behind, not wanting to associate with Harry for now.

Draco called out, "Oi, Potter! Like the buttons?"

"Ignore him, ignore him," Hermione chanted softly.

"Not talking today?" Draco taunted. "Well, maybe you can help me with something. Was your mum's name spelled with two or three L's?"

Harry immediately stopped and whipped around so fast he was nose to nose with the worm. "Why?" he growled.

"Well, it wouldn't fit in a button, but I thought of a theme for my History essay - James and Lily Potter, or why blood traitors and mudblood bitches deserve what they get."

I drew back my right arm and let it fly into his priggish nose. I felt a satisfying crunch and watched him stumble back into the wall.

Harry stepped in, in case he retaliated but Malfoy just stood there. "Let's get to class," Hermione whispered.

We turned and saw both our heads of house standing at the classroom entry. "Miss Weasley!" Professor McGonagall scolded. "Of all the vile displays… Detention, next two night."

It was worth it. "And you, Mr. Malfoy. Two nights as well for conduct unbecoming a Hogwarts student."

He looked shocked, then his eyes begged to Snape, who wouldn't even look at him. Snape's almost looked like he was hurting. "She's the deputy headmistress. Now get yourself fixed up. You three, get to class and I'd better not see any more acting out."

I was half-surprised he hadn't gotten out of it. My brother was speechless as he walked by us.

After supper, I started making my way to McGonagall's office. Harry drew me aside and handed me his cloak. "If you don't want me walking you there, please take this at least."

"Thank you, Harry." It was a good compromise.

"I'll be waiting."

I hurried along as to not be late. Time moved too slow once I was there.

Harry kept his word and did stay up, waiting in the common room for me to come back. "Everything ok?"

"Yes, luv. Didn't run into anyone, but I'll keep the cloak for tomorrow, just in case. How was your evening?"

"It's ok. Hermione said Ron was writing your mum, probably to get you a Howler. So I sent a letter first and took responsibility. You were brilliant, dear."

"So how should we celebrate my brilliance?"

Harry grinned and pull me into his arms. "I have a few ideas."

The next night, Harry was helping Hagrid with something late and Hermione was revising. Hagrid hadn't invited me and I wanted to do some of my own reading on prophecies before my detention. I wasn't getting much from Trelawney and I was still bothered by what I heard last spring. Harry had enough on his mind so I didn't bring it up much.

Most of what I read required more study and a higher vocabulary than I had. Adults seemed to like using big words sometimes to keep kids from understanding them. One passage I found interesting was labeled Oglethorpe's Theory of Architectural Prophecy. From what I understood, the gist was the world was not originally supposed to have death, but death was grafted as a curb against evil and bring balance.

However, this balance is sometimes interrupted and the universe has to take powerful measures to fix itself… and these measures sometimes bleed over into the physical world as prophecies. They cannot be changed or avoided or forced, they just… are. And sometimes the violence done to the world is so great that the prophecy occurs multiple times, parallel manifestations, he called it. Oglethorpe said that was why prophecies are oftentimes so vague, because they may have to apply to multiple events. It was probably more complicated than that, but Oglethorpe hadn't been writing for fourth-years.

I finally had reached my limit in the library. I stood up and was going to head to my bed. I saw the Beauxbatons champion Fleur, sitting alone at a table. She was pretending to read but I figured she was really just killing time, as her page hadn't turned in several minutes. I approached her and asked, "Do you mind if I sit?"

She put her book down and said, "Eetz your library."

I took a chair next to her. "Well, not really, but thanks. I'm Ginny Weasley, by the way."

"Fleur Delacour, but I imagine you knew zat."

I nodded. "Of course. Do you like Hogwarts so far?"

"It eez nice. I do miss home in Paris though. I'd usually go home on weekends."

"I've always wanted to visit Paris. Or anywhere for that matter. It always seemed so exotic."

"To me, just home." That made sense. After a bit she asked, "You're not trying to steal clues for 'arry, are you? I've seen 'im with you much."

I blushed a tad. "We're courting. But no, he wouldn't want me to cheat even if I offered. I just thought you could use a friend. I thought I could use one more too."

"Oh… then it's nice to meet you Geeny."

We chatted for a few more minutes, comparing our schools. Beauxbatons seemed… well, almost stereotypically French. Fancy food, fancier clothes, more sophistication, all the usual. Warmer than Hogwarts, which wouldn't have been a bad thing in my opinion.

"I do apologize for my Eenglish. I'm working on my azzent."

Her voice was very throaty, almost like she had a cold with phlegm. But after being so involved with Harry and how he was still affected by how his horrid relatives treated him because he was different, I had lost all appetite for teasing others. "Don't worry about it. Your English is a hundred-fold better than my French. I just know some curse words I overheard my oldest brother Bill use once." He had to deal with a French bank while supposedly on holiday a few years ago and it was very taxing.

She smiled, "Well, good to be known for zomething."

I then noticed the time. "I have an appointment to get to. See you later?"

"Certainly. And tell 'arry good luck with ze task."

I was early to McGonagall's office and heard angry hushed voices outside. I slipped on the cloak for a little eavesdropping.

It was Draco and Snape. "I'm here to make sure you don't skate out of your punishment."

"My punishment? My father…"

"Your father has already heard what I'm going to tell you, so listen. The real reason for your detention is for letting yourself be distracted by your petty squabbles. The Dark Lord has a plan and will not condone acting without his leave. I have valuable work to perform and I don't need McGonagall or the headmaster poking about. Do you understand?"

He nodded.

"Then keep your mind on what's important."

I let them leave and then gave a minute before pretending to walk in for the first time. I sat at the opposite side of the class and wrote lines for the next hour. I let Draco leave first and used the cloak to slip by Crabbe and Goyle, who were staking out the hallway, two turns ahead. I made a note to thank Harry for his protectiveness later.

I hurried back to the tower. Harry was already there, sitting with Hermione on the couch. He was quite shaken. I sat next to him and quietly asked, "What happened?"

He tried smiling for me. "Hagrid took me into a clearing in the forest. Charlie was there."

"My brother? Why was he back from the Reserve?... No, you can't tell me…"

"It's dragons. The first task is dragons."

Hermione took charge. "We'll figure it out. There has to be a way."

"A way for what, my dear Hermione?" said Fred as he and George popped into our corner of the room.

I wasn't in the mood. "Never you mind. Where have you been, anyway?"

"Nowhere, Mum," George said. "And we've been here all night if anyone is asking. I wouldn't go near the Slytherin dorm though. Foul stench. Not that we wanted to show them what stinking was really like…"

Harry motioned them to come closer and sit with us. "Charlie brought a few of his friends from Romania for the first task."

"Blimey," George said.

Fred added, "I suppose you're thinking of ideas to avoid being terribly charred by the experience."

"Something like that."

Hermione said, "I wish Ron was helping… he'd probably have a good idea. You obviously can't fight it, Harry. They're protected so you wouldn't be allowed to injure it even if you could. You'll have to figure out a way to get around it."

Harry said, "I have my cloak. Suppose I could put it on and just waltz passed it?"

I shook my head. "No good. Charlie gave me a couple books on dragons for Christmas gifts a few years back and one thing I remember is their sense of smell is better than a bloodhound's. And the whole school will be watching, you'll not want to let them all know about your cloak."

Fred said, "Sounds like you need a distraction… George, conference…"

They looked like they were having their own private scrum for a few minutes before returning. George said, "We may have a few items that can help with your smell and as a distraction."

They explained the plan and it was better than anything I was thinking of. Harry said, "Thanks, I'll try that."

George nodded. "Happy to help. Plus I don't think Ginny will be very happy if your bum was burned off."

I turned three shades of red. "It is a very nice one. Try to keep it safe."


	8. Year 4, Part 4

***Ginny***

I stood in the stands next to the brothers I was currently speaking to and also Luna. Hermione had volunteered the night before to find her way next to Ron. She was hoping that after seeing that the first task was no cakewalk, he would come to his senses. If not, I had a bat-bogey hex that would be a lot less subtle if this foolishness went on any longer.

The autumn wind blew across the crowd and I pulled my robe shut to try to keep out the cold air, when suddenly I felt a gentle warmth from my left side. George smiled at me, "Flitwick not teach you the warming charm yet?"

I mentally slapped my hand against my forehead. "No, he has. I'm just an idiot."

Luna said, "I think you're just distracted, Ginny. Your beau is about to face down a dragon."

I didn't need a reminder. I did tell her, "I think that's supposed to be a secret…"

Fred chuckled, "That's about as much a secret as the fact that Malfoy's a gigantic arse. Hagrid showed the dragons to Madame Maxime... from what Harry said, sounded like his idea of a date. Karkaroff got a glimpse too." And Harry had told Cedric in front of me shortly after he learned, wanting things to be fair.

Ludo Bagman stood up and started speechifying. Honored guests, etc… this first event actually was pretty much closed to the public — the stands had staff and students from the schools, Bagman, Mr. Crouch, and a few members of the press. Mr. Crouch explained that they may invite more for the other tasks, but didn't want to make the champions nervous.

Luna was taking notes for her dad, who hadn't been invited. The ministry didn't care too much for the Quibbler. That woman Rita Skeeter was there. My mum read her article some, but to me it was just a lot of trashy gossip. She had cornered Harry the other day, and if he wasn't about to face down a dragon, I'd be worried about that instead.

Bagman continued, "And now, it is time to reveal the first task!" He flicked his wand that brought down an invisibility ward, revealing four enormous dragons. "Each dragon has a clutch of eggs, among which has been placed a golden one. The champions will, one-by-one, face one of these beasts to seal the golden egg, which contains a clue vital to their success in the next task. I warn you, if you have a fear of monstrous animals, burns or fire, you may want to look away!"

I clenched my fist until my shortly trimmed nails dug into the palm of my hand.

The order chosen was supposedly random — Cedric, then Fleur, Krum, and Harry.

The Hufflepuff was announced and he left the tent. Bagman shouted out, "Everyone, please be quiet… any sudden sounds or movement could be disastrous…"

The crowd complied and there were only muted whispers. Cedric looked around for a bit and found a large stone about the size of a breadbox. He concentrated and transfigured the rock into a medium-sized brown dog. The mutt immediately ran towards the Swedish Short-Snout and started barking. It danced side to side just at the edge of the flame's reach. The dragon's head swayed back and forth following the dog, obviously not happy about the loud animal but not worried enough to spend much effort dealing with it.

While all this was going on, Cedric had crept up towards the eggs. His hands moved like treacle in the winter until he had the egg. Then he was off sprinting as the dragon got bored with the pup. It spurted jet of orange flames at him. He got singed on his right arm but was able to dodge most of it.

Cedric held his egg up high for the crowd and most of Hogwarts cheered appreciatively. He waited for the judges' score, revealed to be thirty-eight out of a possible fifty. Then he was escorted to the medical tent where Madame Pomfrey was going to work on his burns.

Fleur got the Common Welsh Green, which I thought was odd to associate the word "common" with a dragon in any form. She weaved an intricate spell with a lot of words and wand-work. Most of it didn't sound like any of the ancient languages spells were normally cast in.

After ten minutes, the dragon softly fell asleep. The French girl then calmly walked up to the dragon, retrieved the egg, and turned around to walk back. As she did, the dragon snored or sneezed in its sleep and Fleur's lovely flowing robe had its train catch on fire. Fortunately, she knew enough to not panic but was able to put it out with the water charm before it did too much damage.

For her trouble, Fleur was awarded thirty-five points. I guessed the length of her charm had cost her — if the dragon hadn't been chained up and had wanted to cause her harm, it wasn't going to sit still that long.

Krum calmly and confidently approached the smallest of the dragons, the Chinese Fireball. With one swift motion, he sent a curse directly at the dragon's eyes. I wasn't familiar with it, but it seemed to have terribly confused the poor animal. She was in a state of panic and apparent blindness. Krum was able to quickly get his egg but the dragon smashed several of her eggs before my brother and the other handlers got her under control. Krum got docked a few points by most of the judges but his headmaster Karkaroff gave him a perfect ten, giving him a leading score of forty overall.

Finally, it was Harry's turn. He walked out and from the distance he looked so much younger and smaller than the other champions, who were really adults. I knew he could handle himself, but I was nervous. I felt a reassuring arm on my shoulder and I looked to my left, "Your bag of tricks better work…"

He squeezed me for a second and said in mock-offense, "You ever doubt us, dear sister?"

With Harry's luck, he was left with the Hungarian Horntail, by far the most dangerous one, with lethal spikes on its tail as well as one of the strongest flames of all dragons, if I remembered from my book correctly.

Harry paused and retrieved four small balls from his robe. He placed them on the ground and then lit three of them with a spark from his wand.

Fred said, "They're mainly made with dried Hippogriff droppings — Hagrid lets us have as much as we want. Horrific smell, but nothing a dragon will fear."

Harry threw the balls towards the dragon and they landed within five yards of its nose.

Next he knelt and lit the fourth ball. It produced a cloud of white smoke and when it had thinned, Harry was gone. There were several murmurs about a fourth year pulling off such a strong disillusionment charm. A few of us knew the truth.

Less than a minute went by before Harry appeared next to Bagman holding his prize. All of Hogwarts erupted in cheers except for the Slytherins.

Before I realized it, I was over the fence between the spectators and the judges. Harry fortunately saw me before I bowled him over. He opened his arms and I crushed him in mine. I did have enough control to not snog him in front of the entire student body, but only because I knew there were some photographers around and he wouldn't want that.

We didn't need to say anything to each other. He just smiled at me and I slowly released him. Harry received a perfect ten from Maxime, Crouch, and Bagman. Dumbledore gave him a nine — probably because he wouldn't ever give a ten.

Karkaroff used his wand to signal a one and he was almost booed back to Durmstrang. It was unbelievable… Harry had performed almost as quickly as Krum and nothing was damaged on him or the dragon. It probably was either my jumping out of the stands or his disappearing that made it not very entertaining to the headmaster of Durmstrang who looked bored. Most likely, he was just cheating. Still, he was tied for first place!

Harry was forced to go to the medical tent, when Pomfrey did a quick check to make sure everything was fine. I didn't let go of his hand. She told Harry, "I'm supposed to do a full check-out of all the champions, but you probably don't want to do that in front of Miss Weasley. I'm not detecting any burns or cuts, so I'm going to release you without any treatment. Probably first time this has ever happened with you."

He smiled, not minding the doting too much. As we left, she muttered under her breath, "Dragons at my school! What could possibly be next!" That wasn't anything I wanted to think about that very instant either.

"You were great, luv," I said after he was dismissed.

"Thanks, Gin. I need to thank everyone who helped me, they really should get the credit."

I patted his lower back as we walked back towards our dorms. "I wouldn't say that, but I do believe Fred and George have a party started already where you can say a few words."

"Great," he said a bit sarcastically.

I was right. The twins had somehow managed to procure a few cases of Butterbeer that were quickly being emptied. I grabbed myself one and gave one to Harry. I nudged him in the side for encouragement and he stood up on a chair. "Thanks, everyone for your support. Really. It's been a rough few weeks. I'd like to especially thank Fred and George who created the smoke and dung bombs I used."

"What's in the egg?" Seamus yelled.

I was curious too. Harry pressed a button on the side and its two halves flipped open like a butterfly. Suddenly, an ear-splitting screech was heard. He closed it as quickly as he could.

"What the devil?" said Dean.

Fred guessed, "That sounds like Percy singing in the shower…"

"Maybe you have to attack him during his morning routine?" George added.

"Or you have to sing like that to open a lock?" That was Parvati.

Seamus said, "Sounded like a Banshee… that could be it."

"I guess I'll have to figure it out. Next task is in early February, so I have a bit."

Not one for long speeches, he stepped off the chair and put his arms around me. Before we got any further, Ron approached us. "Harry… I'm sorry." He looked at me and then back at him. "Can we talk for a minute… alone?"

Harry looked at me for permission. I nodded. If Ron would apologize to Harry privately, I would be happy. He had hurt me but I felt worse from seeing what it had done to Harry more than anything.

After a while, they returned. Harry gave Ron a hard look and my brother looked at me and said, "Ginny, I should apologize to you too. You and Harry are great together. You really are… at least if you have to be with someone, he's the best I would pick."

"Thanks, Ron." He quietly excused himself and headed for his dormitory. After the Common Room had thinned out enough that we could have a private conversation and not shout, I asked Harry, "What happened with Ron?"

He shrugged. "He realized with a bit of help from Hermione, that I wouldn't put myself in in front of a dragon without a good reason. If I needed to, I would do it to help someone, but not for the stupid contest… that's what he said at least."

"Good."

"He also said he was a bit jealous of us. Not really upset much of you being his sister and all, but that it just seemed so easy for us."

Easy! The last two years of my life had been anything but easy and Harry was far from perfect. "Just because we don't like fighting in front of him…"

"I know, Gin. I told him as much and said that I would have talked with him more about us but it's obvious he's a bit uncomfortable. If you were anyone else, he'd want to hear the guy talk and what-not.

He stopped for a moment and trace a few strands of my hair from my temple down to my neck. "But, I don't want anyone else. Just you. I think he's getting that I really am in love with you."

And that was enough talking for me. I put my hands around his neck and drew him in close for a kiss that I kept in my head the rest of the night.

 ***Arthur***

I had asked Barty for an opinion on an appeal being made regarding magic carpets. The normal rules still clearly defined them as a charmed non-exempt muggle artifact, but now it was being framed as an international trade issue. There weren't any magic carpet makers in Britain or Ireland, so the argument was we were banning them to protect Cleansweep and the other broomstick manufacturers.

It was a huge headache I hoped he would take care of. The trouble was he had all but stopped answering memos from me.

Finally, a reply came through and it was unfortunately very noncommittal. But something lingered in the back of my head. After a cup of Earl Grey, I realized what it was.

I briskly walked down a flight of stairs to my son's office. "Arthur," he said. He had understandably taken to address me by my first name at work. I closed the door.

"Percy, how long have you been forging posts for Barty?"

He looked like he was about to deny it, but decided against it. "Just today, I swear. How did you know?"

"There is only 's' and one 'n' in occasionally." It was a word he always had trouble with. "You were using a charm to fake handwriting instead of the spelling one?"

"Yes, I did. He hasn't been in all week and I wanted to cover for him. He's an important man and I'm sure he has his reasons."

I shook my head. "That may be, but you have to report this. Especially with You-Know-Who…"

Percy interrupted. "Only on Harry's say-so. I'm not convinced he wasn't confused or making things up, wanting attention."

"Harry's not like that and you know it, Percy."

"No, I really don't. Mr. Crouch doesn't seem terribly worried."

"You told him? I asked you to keep that a secret!"

"Yes, I told him. He's my superior here at the ministry, not you or Dumbledore and I'd be remiss for not saying something. Now, if you would excuse me, I will go check on Mr. Crouch's house and report anything I need to."

I was just dismissed by my own son. Too hurt to say anything I wouldn't regret, I quietly left his office.

I was thinking about my conversation with Percy for the rest of the morning and couldn't concentrate, so I took my usual walk at lunchtime a few minutes early. As I turned the corner and headed back, I felt a sharp voice say, "Don't turn around. Turn into the alley up here and don't say a sound if you want to stay healthy."

My heart froze. I couldn't believe my stupidity and all I could do was hope that my wife and children wouldn't have to pay for it. I slowly nodded and turned left a few steps later.

"Turn around."

I obeyed. Standing before me was Narcissa Malfoy. Long, almost silvery-white hair but she looked several years older than when I had seen her last. "Lady Malfoy," I whispered. It never hurt to be polite, especially when the person had a wand stuck in your face.

"Quiet, Weasley. I need to talk to my cousin Sirius immediately. Please tell me you can be useful at something and arrange that."

Ignoring the slight, I spoke up. "I can do that, quite simply." He had in fact given me a gem with the Proteus charm; his copy would quickly warm when I rubbed mine three times. It also had a locator charm that gave Sirius enough of an indication where I was for him to apparate. He had meant it in case Harry needed him, but this seemed important.

Sirius popped in a minute later. He took one look at my companion and said, "Bloody hell, what's going on."

"May we talk somewhere a bit more private?"

He almost rolled his eyes and shook his head. He did a quick scan for tracking spells and then said, "All right. Both of you, take a hand, I'll side-along you to a safe location.

I soon felt the familiar sensation of being sucked through a pipe. My eyes involuntarily shut, and when they opened, we were standing inside a small hut.

Sirius conjured a small table and three chairs and motioned for us to sit down. "Now, dear cousin, what did you wish to discuss."

"I may need your help," she began. "We obviously believe very different things about our place in the world, but I never approved of the methods my husband and some if his associates were using. I had thought we were done with all that when the Dark Lord disappeared and we could live. Probably not happily, but at least with some safety."

She paused and looked at me. "I was not aware of what he tried doing to your little girl, Mr. Weasley. By the time I learned, I couldn't stop him… not that I'd have been able to anyway. My husband is not a patient or forgiving man, especially to his family."

"I'll try to accept your apology," I said softly. "She still struggle sometimes, but she's better."

"That unfortunately will be the least of your troubles. We have a house guest that has been staying with us since the Cup."

"Voldemort," Sirius hissed.

Narcissa trembled but nodded. "I fear he and my husband will get us all killed or ruined. I cannot do anything but play the hostess for my son's sake. But when the time is right, I will need you to help save us."

"What is he planning?" Sirius asked.

She hesitated.

"If you want help, you're going to have to help me "

"I'm not certain. He does not involve me in his confidences since I've never taken the Dark Mark. I'm also a woman and I believe the only one he really trusts is my sister Bellatrix. I have to believe he will try to break her and others out of Azkaban at some point. For now, he seems to be building his strength and waiting for the right time. He believes the wizarding world has become complacent and weak. One overwhelming show of strength and resistance will crumble."

He-who-must-not-be-named was likely not far off. Most people the Order had approached were too scared to let themselves believe that he was back. Sirius gave her one of his charmed gems. "Press this three times and help will be on its way. Dumbledore will make arrangements…"

"Please, Sirius, you cannot tell him." She looked terrified for a second. "Anything Dumbledore is told in confidence is repeated in my house by Severus within days. You tell him and I'm dead."

I glanced at Sirius, who looked back at me but didn't speak. We both had concerns about Snape and we knew he had wanted some information to give to prove his worth to the enemy. But this…

"Agreed. If you believe that, we will keep your secret."

"Now, I must be leaving before I am too badly missed. Thank you, to both of you."

Sirius waved his wand to lower whatever wards he had in place and she disappeared. "I should get going as well," I added. "See you at Christmas?"

"Probably not. The kids will all be at Hogwarts, I imagine. I'm going to be abroad for a while, doing more research and training. I'll try to be back for Harry's second and third task, especially since family's invited."

"All right, then." I shook his hand and went back to work.

 ***Ginny***

It was now mid-November. I was waiting for Harry in the common room for breakfast. Usually it was the other way around, with how long my hair took, especially on shampoo days. Sometimes I thought of chopping it, but we both liked his playing with it when we were doing most anything.

Hermione was still trying to be better so she had went down by herself already. Then Ron stomped by, barely looking at me. "Tell your boyfriend to keep his bloody fan club meetings at decent hours."

That was terribly confusing. Harry finally came down five minutes later, escorted by two young house elves. "Who are these?"

"Good morning, Gin," he said with a quick squeeze. "This one on my left is an old friend, Dobby."

This causes Dobby to fall in shock. "The great Harry Potter thinks Dobby is a friend? Never in Dobby's poor wretched life…"

Harry interrupted the fawning. "Dobby, this is my girlfriend Ginny Weasley."

He took one look at me and started wailing. "You are the one Dobby's old master tried to hurt. Dobby tried to keep away Master Harry from the Chamber to save him, but Donny did not mean…"

I knelt down and patted him. "I forgive you. You did the best you could and everything was made right."

This calmed him a little. Harry was finally able to introduce his other companion. "This is Winky. Crouch fired her after the tournament, said she wasn't needed anymore. She's had a hard go of it since."

That seemed odd. With how busy he was, I'd have thought he would need more help. He wasn't getting any younger. Winky curtsied but wasn't a big talker. Dobbie on the other hand…

"Master Harry tricked Lucius Malfoy to freeing Dobby. Dobby has since tried looking for work but wanted to be a free elf and be wanting paying for his work."

Winky looked horrified. "Tis not proper, Dobby! Winky wanted a proper family that would bind her and take away her disgrace."

Harry smiled. "They both kind of jumped me this morning, too early for your brother's taste." He sat down and I joined him. "I'm giving Dobby a galleon a week and a Sunday off a month."

Dobby said, "Dobby is not greedy and talked Master Harry down from paying too much."

"I also said he can drop the 'Master' bit, but he insists. Winky didn't ask for anything. She just wanted to be magically bonded and stay with Dobby."

"Wow, ok…"

He turned to them. "Now that you have introduced to Ginny, I don't have anything else right now…"

"Maybe have them help in the kitchen? Plenty of company there." It had been Tom's first experience with house elves.

"That sounds good. Dobby, Winky, please help out there. Let me know if you need something. And help Ginny with anything she needs too."

They nodded and then disappeared into the air.

My stomach grumbled. "We better get going if we want breakfast."

"Yeah, sounds good."

I was smiling at him on the way down. He had no idea what a wonderful thing he had just done.

Harry had tried the egg a few times over the next few days without any success. Hermione and Ron were both trying to be helpful, almost too much. In between bites of pudding after supper, he exclaimed, "I'll figure it out, just not in the middle of a tart!"

Dumbledore rose to make an announcement before the Great Hall started emptying. "One of the traditions of the Tri-Wizard tournament is the Yule Ball. Fourth-years and above, as well as any invited third-years, are all welcome to attend. It will take place on Christmas Eve and be a formal event. Dress robes for men and robes or dresses for women are required."

All around me, boys were groaning. The gossip mill seemed to move faster than a herd of hippogriffs. Many of the girls were chattering to their best mates about the dance.

I wasn't ecstatic, but it sounded like it could be fun with the right person. For a moment, I had a sense of dread, worrying about clothes, but then I remembered Sirius had taken care of that for all of us last Christmas. They were loose on me then but now would have just the right amount of snugness. He must have known.

"Gin?"

Harry's voice broke me away from my thoughts. "Yes…?"

"Would you go to the ball with me?"

"You better take me, Potter," I said playfully. "Of course, Harry."

He looked relieved. "I thought I should ask before someone else did."

Ron shook his head in disbelief. "Seriously? Like she'd ever go with anyone else. You're lucky. I'm going to have to think of a girl that will go with me."

Hermione looked at him and said, "Yes, how many girls do you know?"

Ron shrugged his shoulders and got up. He called after Seamus, probably to get some ideas. I whispered to Harry to go on ahead. Hermione stayed seated, speechless.

I asked her, "Should I…?"

"No… don't, Ginny. I'm not so desperate as to go begging after someone that rude."

"He didn't mean it. He's just… he's Ron. He will wake up. If you don't want me shaking some sense into him, maybe you should."

"Maybe."

"You intimidate him. You seem so much… more than he feels about himself. It's tough." I sighed. "Harry's usually fearless because he never had anything or anyone to lose. That's changing now. But Ron doesn't know how rich he has always been."

We slowly went back to Gryffindor tower. Harry was reading one of his Defense books from Lupin. I sat down next to him. "The other guys are debating the best lines to use on witches. I already have my hands full." He winked at me.

"Definitely." I moved in and softly and slowly kissed him. "Thanks for asking me. I'll always like being asked, but you don't have to worry about anyone cutting in."

Harry's hands found a few strands of my hair to play with, as was their habit. Suddenly, Professor McGonagall appeared at the front of the Common Area.

She waited maybe five seconds before the room was dead silent. "Gryffindors, I would like to encourage everyone interested in going. It will be a very enjoyable and relaxing time, a chance to have fun and let your hair down. However, this is a formal event and I won't have tolerance for any wild shenanigans." The professor stared at the twins for several heartbeats. They both nodded in surrender.

"Mr. Potter, a word, please."

We both got up and walked over. She raised an eyebrow at me. "I assume that finding a date won't be an issue?"

"No, Professor, I'm taking my girlfriend." I still loved hearing that.

"The reason I'm asking is that the champions will be seated together at the head table… this ball is technically in their honor. You and the others will be responsible for leading out the first dance."

"Oh." He shrugged. "Well, with Gin with me, she'll be getting all the attention so I'll survive."

I slapped him on the shoulder. "Cheeky," I murmured.

McGonagall smiled at us for the briefest of time. That was weird.

A week or so later, Lavender and I were in the library working on an assignment for History of Magic. Professor Binns had assigned them out of a hat. It hadn't been bad until she started going in full panic mode with not having been asked by anyone. I was considering pushing Ron towards her just so she'd focus, but that wouldn't be a nice gesture for Hermione. Or Ron. Or Lavender.

We were reading about some old-blood, now extinct families — Slytherin, Peverell, and Porter. I refused to read more about the Goblin wars since Binns covered it every lecture and Bill had shown me that the Goblins had their own version that was quite different.

I heard Hermione's voice a few tables down, being louder than normal in a library. "Here's a copy, it's usually available. I have my own copy, of course. Why are you so interested?"

"Architecture has been an interest of mine, Hermoninny," someone said with a Durmstrang accent. "I vould like to study more after Quidditch."

I had to turn around. There was my friend with… Viktor Krum? And the way he was sitting, he was obviously flirting with her. She didn't seem to notice or mind.

We did finally get the report done and Lavender did her share after Seamus asked her to the ball during Hogsmeade weekend. Harry and I were having a real dinner date in the Hogshead. Harry was still nervous when we were on actual dates and I finally had had enough of it.

"Harry, I'm the same person at dinner that I am in the Common Room. I just want to have a fun afternoon with you, so stop acting like you're being graded."

"I'm sorry, Gin."

"What is it then?"

"I don't want to disappoint you. I guess I'm just afraid sometimes still."

I put my right hand over his left. The ring he gave me reflected a few flickers from the candle at our table. "I. Love. You. That means I'm not tossing you just for acting like a prat. I will tell you when you are, but I'll still be right here."

He smiled a bit embarrassed. "I love you too." He put down enough coin to pay for the meal and led me to a side street where we were alone. And he started to cry. I held him for several minutes, not daring to say another word. By this point we had both collapsed to the ground.

He took off his glasses, wiped his eyes and then put them back on. "There's a small voice in my head that tells me that this won't last and all I deserve is my cupboard. It's quieted but still there sometimes. It may always be there."

"And sometimes I'm still the girl chasing a hero. But then I see what you gave me and I know you, we, are real. I love to laugh with you. But we can cry together too."

I had my old Harry back after that. I wanted to do something to help for next time his doubt came back and then I had an idea. I was ready by the day before the ball but decided to wait and make it his Christmas gift.

And then my thoughts were interrupted.

Neville nervously approached me and Hermione… Harry had disappeared an hour before, promising a surprise later. "Hermione, I was wondering if you would go to the ball with me?"

"I'm sorry, but I already have a date." Poor guy, it had probably taken him all that time to work up the courage to ask her.

A few minutes later, Harry had his arms around me and then Ron came by. "Hey, Hermione… I was wondering…." Oh, Merlin, I didn't want to look but I couldn't stop. "You're kind of a girl and I'm still looking for a date to the ball."

"I already have a date. I just told Neville that."

"Oh, I thought you were being nice."

"No, I was being honest. People who are kind of girls actually do that sometimes." She got up. "I'm going to bed. Don't be up too late Ginny." She got bossy when mad.

Ron just stood there. Finally, he shook his head and then left for his room. Harry whispered in my ear, "Do you know…?"

"I have a guess."

"Can you…"

"Sorry, dear. That's her secret to tell."

"Ok… well, I should go see if Ron wants to talk." He tickled my earlobe and then kissed my lips goodnight.

Hermione was insistent she didn't want to talk, especially with Lavender and Parvati in the room, both with dates (Parvati was asked by a Durmstrang boy). I closed my eyes and let myself dream about the next day and all the days after.


	9. Year 4, Part 5

***Ginny***

"I hate my hair!" yelled Hermione. She was standing in the washroom with her bushy mess and a brush. My friend went back to attacking it as if it was her mortal enemy.

Parvati sighed and turned around. Hermione had been very moody, especially for her usual calm appearance. "Hermione, stop, you're just going to make it worse… here, I may have something that'll help." She produced a bottle. "Sleekeazy's Hair Potion, I use it all the time."

Hermione looked at the bottle suspiciously, read the back and smiled. "Thanks, I'll try some."

I went back to finishing my own hair. I didn't want to tie it up too tightly but wanted to keep it under control for any fast dancing, so I worked on two small braids on either side, just to keep stray strands for interfering.

Hermione's hair was already starting to settle into an elaborate up-do and she handed the bottle back. Parvati asked if I wanted some.

"No thanks, never used it. Mum said there's a warning about redheads so I've never had anything to do with it."

Hermione laughed. "That's what you think." I looked at her with one eyebrow raised. "Never read the fine print? The potion's recipe remains a closely guarded secret, owned by the same family of the original inventor, Fleamont Potter."

Lavender said, "You're giving us the mickey."

Parvati said, "No she's not."

I said, "That's Harry's granddad."

Hermione said, "Another company makes it now, but the recipe was licensed and not sold… he must get a few sickles from each sale."

"Well, at least his money comes from something decent."

"It's odd that he's never used it himself, with his unruly hair."

"I like it just the way it is, Hermione. A little unruliness can be fun." I stood up and straightened out my dress. "Zip me up?"

Parvati gave me a hand. My dress was simple but elegant. It was dark black like midnight, with a few very subtle lines of deep green woven in, just to give a hint of color. It went down to just above my knees. I packed my wand so I could cast a warming charm if we decided to get some air. The dress had very thin straps but they were steady enough that I could move without worrying. No shoulders and the cut was fairly modest but definitely showed I wasn't eleven.

I waited for the rest of my roommates and we walked down the stairs to the Common Area together. Hermione and Parvati went on to meet up with their dates. Seamus took Lavender's hand and they walked out.

Ron was nowhere to be seen. He and Neville were both on their own. Maybe they'd find a group to hang with… and I decided to not worry about him right now.

I took a step down the stairs and saw my love's eyes locked on me. I hurried to him.

Harry took several seconds before he was able to start thinking again. "Gin… you look… wow."

I blushed and smiled. "I'd snog you but I think the lipstick needs to stay on me and not you. But later…" I gave him a soft hug and then gasped quietly as I felt his hands on my bare back.

He was looking quite dashing himself. His robes must have been custom-made and had a bright red lining, a bit brighter than Gryffindor colors. He had put on a dash of some cologne — I could smell just a hint of woodsy evergreen.

"If you don't mind," he said, "I have your Christmas gift early. It sort of fits tonight."

He didn't need to ask twice. "Sure, if you want."

Harry pulled out a sparkling necklace made of gold with two stones, an emerald and a ruby. It looked beautiful, especially at Christmas. I grinned. "Thank you, dear. I never was much for jewelry but you are doing a brilliant job of changing my mind." It had a small bit of tarnish, just enough for me to know this was another piece of his mother's and not new. "Help me put it on?"

I lifted the back of my hair and he slipped on the necklace. His hands rested on my neck as he fumbled with the clasp. The stones sat right above the top of my dress, nestled in my center. I caught Harry staring there and a bit lower for a moment before he stopped himself.

"I actually have your gift ready, too. Do we have time?"

"Uh, yes, that's fine, Gin."

I hurried back up to my room (as fast as I could in dress shoes), and grabbed the small box I had wrapped with some paper I had decorated. I presented him with the box. "It's homemade, of course," I said with a little humility.

He smiled and said, "I love those." Harry slowly opened the box and he was presented with a bracelet woven from a several locks of my hair. "Wow… thank you."

"I charmed it best I could so it should last a couple years if I did it right. I thought… it might help when you have any doubt." He gave it to me and I secured it around his left wrist. "You can look at it and remember how much I love you."

Despite my earlier warning, he kissed me softly but soundly. Then I added, "Plus, it doesn't seem fair that I'm the only one wearing something that shows we're together."

"I think you scared all the other girls off anyway."

"Prat," I said, though he was probably right.

He grinned at me and took my hand. "Shall we?" I nodded and we walked towards the anteroom where the champions were meeting.

As I had guessed, Hermione was there with Krum. The Ravenclaw Seeker Cho Chang was escorting Cedric and Fleur was with a French boy who seemed distracted. Harry was a bit surprised, but we kept our eyes on each other as we stepped on to the floor for the opening dance.

The Hall was magnificent. The ceiling showed the clear night sky, but it was a bit out of focus, making it look like it stretched to eternity. There was snow that fell from the ceiling and then faded before it reached us. The chandeliers all had mistletoe hung on them. And I was with the only person I'd ever want.

After dinner, we began with a traditional waltz. Mum had taught me a bit of how to dance when I was younger, but we hadn't been able to afford professional lessons like was usually common for daughters of pure-blood houses. Harry surprised me with his style. He twirled me for a moment and then drew me in close. I did remind myself to let him lead.

He was a little nervous, but he was surprisingly good. "You're done this before."

"A little… I didn't want to be stepping on your toes, so I wanted some practice beforehand."

"It better not have been Lavender."

Harry grinned. "No, Gin. When I was cleaning for one of my detentions, I noticed someone that had won the Quidditch cup and a ballroom competition the same year and thought to ask for help."

"Madam Hooch?" I guessed.

"No… Professor McGonagall."

"Really? I guess I can't see her as a student, riding on a broom or tearing up a dance floor."

He smirked. "She was young once too. And she's nice enough outside of class. She practiced with me a few times."

We passed the next few songs in silent swaying. After that, I needed some refreshments and a minute off my shoes. Harry was getting some biscuits and punch while I sat down next to Fleur.

"Geeny, enjoying yourself?"

"Yes, thanks." I realized while talking to her that I was probably the youngest person here. I saw Luna, who had been quite forward and asked Neville, and a couple other third-years, but I had even barely made the year I was in. "And how are you and your date?"

She shook her head. "Jacques just asked me to make Michelle jealous. Zey are dancing now."

When Harry returned, I said to him, "How about you give Fleur the next dance? Inter-school unity and all that."

"Sure, if you don't mind." Fleur smiled and took Harry by the hand.

Shortly after the next song started, Michael Connor came by. "Ginny, do you want to dance for a bit?"

"Ok, that's fine." We had been good enough acquaintances the year before last, even if I hadn't gone to classes with him recently.

He wasn't nearly as good as Harry, but it was nice catching up with him. Until the song ended. Then he grabbed me around the small of my back and pushed his lips on mine.

Enraged, I pushed him away and slapped him hard across the face with my right hand. I hoped my promise ring would leave a mark. "What the hell! You normally kiss girls that are having a friendly dance with you? I've dating Harry!"

"He's dancing with that bombshell Veela over there. You let her get her claws into him, he's gone. You might as well stay with me."

And I realized why Fleur was so lonely.

I was about to give him a fresh one, but I didn't want to hurt my hand on his rock-hard head. "You're an arse. Go away, now."

He rolled his eyes and walked away. I stood there for a moment until Harry found me. "Fleur says thanks but she could feel you needed me."

I felt dirty after what Michael had tried, and wanted to get him out of his mind. I closed my eyes and squeezed Harry as hard as I could and we shuffled off to a dark corner off the dance floor. Once we were not center stage, I calmed down enough and snogged him good and proper. "Can we get some air, luv?" I asked.

He was still a bit foggy from the kiss, I thought. He did manage to nod and we walked outside. We found a moss-covered statue of a centaur and hid behind it. "Are you alright?" Harry asked.

"Michael Connor kissed me. I made sure he won't try again." My boyfriend looked very angry with reason. I firmly informed him, "I took care of it, Harry. If he bothers me again, I'll let you know."

He nodded. "If you dealt with him, I don't think that'll be a problem. I'm sorry I wasn't there. But why would he ever think…"

"He thought you dancing with Fleur meant we were over. He said something about her being a Veela."

Harry shuffled his feet a little. "Yeah, she is. Her wand has a hair of her grandmum's; she mentioned it when they were checking out our wands. She tries to not advertise it much. Fleur was curious why I wasn't being affected by her."

I restarted the kiss from earlier but was quickly interrupted by a row between Hermione and Ron. "He's the enemy! Krum's just trying to get you to spy on Harry. You ought to support your school and your friends."

Bloody hypocrite.

Hermione shouted, "Viktor's a friend and he knows a girl when he sees one and what to do with one. If you wanted something, you could have asked and not think of me as a last resort!"

Krum added, "Ronald, let us be."

I would never hear Ron's retort. I was about to tell them to hush because some of us were trying to get in a good snog, but then Hermione gasped and pointed to the sky toward Hogsmeade.

I whipped around and my blood went to ice. I saw a snake and a skull above the village, the Dark Mark.

Harry started to run towards the village. I tried catching up to him, but it wasn't happening in my shoes. Thankful, Ron did and got him to stop. "I know you want to help, mate, but chances are they did that to lure you out. We need to get back inside."

We walked back to the door, Ron still giving glares to Hermione. I soon heard Fleur's voice, calling for me. "Geeny, 'arry, zey are about to…" We all heard a loud slam followed by a shimmer around the Hogwarts' walls. "Close ze castle," she finished.

We stepped back onto the main oath. Harry looked at me and said, "Wands."

He and Viktor pulled theirs from their robes. I knelt and whispered the charm and soon my mine was in my hand. I looked over and saw Fleur doing the same. "Garter holster with a shrinking charm?"

"Of course, my maman insists, whenever I'm with a boy." Sirius had included mine as an accessory to the dress. It was a good thing too, definitely nowhere else to put it.

I had to laugh at that. "Dating Harry, you learn to expect the unexpected."

I was sure Harry wanted to run to the village, but Ron and Hermione both were defenseless. They finally shut up and we tightened our circle, waiting…

 ***Arthur***

Christmas Eve without any children for the first time in twenty-four years found me with my wife doing something under the Christmas tree that last time had led to the birth of our daughter. That had been early December, and Ginny was early by a couple weeks, even then she had been in a hurry to grow up.

As we were getting dressed for bed (at my age, sleeping on the floor would have led to regrets), Sirius' patronus appeared. "Attack at Hogsmeade in progress, need help. Apparition wards up, use Aberforth's floo."

I looked at Molly, and she nodded. We quickly put on more useful clothes and hurried over.

Albus' brother was on guard. "Glad to have your help. Sirius, Tonks, Bill, and Remus are here near Honeydukes."

"Thanks. Moody?"

"Albus insists we have someone at the Ministry at all times."

We met up with the rest of the Order that was there, the fight already in progress. The opposition was using stunners and cutting curses and had wild aim. Within a few minutes, some of them were down and the rest of the group had disappeared like a mist. There was no further resistance from the street. Sirius had taken charge. He said, "Pair off and search the area."

Molly and I went towards the unconscious body of one person she had hit. He was wearing a Death Eater mask which I ripped off to reveal an unrecognized face. I broke his wand, bound him using the incarcerous charm, and then levitated him over to the middle of the road for the aurors.

All told, we had six captures, all of whom seemed to be new, inexperienced recruits. And no one recognizable from any of the sacred twenty-eight pure-blood families. Suddenly, I heard a yell that I knew had to be my son's.

I ran over towards his screams. Finally, I saw him pinned to the ground, being mauled by some sort of… well, it must have been a man but it didn't look like one. "Stupefy!"

My stunner went wide left due to my running. Before I could repeat, the attacker grabbed a charm on a necklace and portkeyed away.

I hurried towards Bill and the rest of the group was soon there. His face was shredded and oozing blood and he was moaning. It was hard to see how badly he was hurt in the dark and I dared not risk a light. Tonks handed me a pain potion. I immediately slipped it to Bill and he calmed down and fell asleep.

I then noticed Sirius lying a few yards away. He was bleeding profusely from the head. Tonks waved her wand to stop the bleeding and immobilize him.

Suddenly, I heard the pop of an apparition. Auror Kingsley Shacklebolt had arrived. "Tonks, status?"

"Two serious injuries. Sirius took a brick to the back of the head. Bill Weasley was bitten repeatedly."

Remus said, "It was Greyback. It's a week passed the full moon, but he wanted to bite anyway." Remus had a look of disgust.

Tonks added, "I think we should take them up to Hogwarts, better privacy than St. Mungo's. We have six new Death Eaters trussed up over there."

Kingsley nodded. "You all take care of Bill and Sirius. I'll get reinforcements to take that lot back to the Ministry and check for civilian casualties."

We had them levitated and gently floating towards the castle. Molly was openly weeping as I held her hand, not knowing what to say. Memories of her brothers came back and I knew this would happen be the last hurt.

Remus sent a patronus to Dumbledore to let us in. The gates opened when we reached them and we headed to the closest door to Poppy.

We almost were ran over by Ginny, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and two students, one each from Durmstrang and Beauxbatons. "Mum, Dad," Ginny said.

"What are you doing out?" Molly demanded.

Harry explained, "We were all outside when the castle was locked down…. Merlin, what happened to Bill and Sirius? Are they ok?"

"We're taking them to Poppy."

"We're coming too," Ginny insisted, meaning her and Harry. Ron spoke up as well.

I didn't argue. The French girl said, "I may be of zome help as well."

Hermione and the Durmstrang boy parted from the rest of us. We soon had each of them in a hospital bed.

"Hmm… sharp blow to the head, some blood loss. He may have a concussion and being unconscious is no good. I need to stop any brain swelling soon."

"What creature did this?" she asked about our son.

"An untransformed werewolf," said Remus. "I have never…" he turned around and walked towards the far side of the room. Tonks followed him.

"Let me try to help."

"I was told you had Veela blood?" Poppy asked.

"A quarter."

"All right. I'll start working on Sirius."

Molly and I were each holding one of Bill's hands. Harry had his arms around Ginny and Ron had collapsed in a corner. The strange girl approached. "My name's Fleur Delacour. My grandmuzzer would be able to heal a newly-bitten werewolf if she could treat him within the hour. A Veela charm is the only known cure. His name?"

"Bill," I choked out.

"Geeny's brother?" The family resemblance was still there. She said, "He won't be turned since it wasn't a full moon, but these scarz will not heal properly and there may be other damage. I'll try to help Beel."

Fleur stood at the head of the bed and put her hands on his wounds. A soft trilling sound came from her and her hands began to glow. She stood perfectly still until the glowing subsided fifteen minutes later.

Most of the wounds had closed. There was still noticeable scarring, but he wouldn't need to worry about blood poisoning and his left eye, which I had been worried about, looked saved.

"I'm sorry, but that is the best I can do."

"Miss Delacour, thank you… he looks worlds better," I said.

Bill sputtered and coughed. He looked up and then around. "Dad, Mum?"

Molly smiled and almost squeezed him too tightly. "You'll be ok." He tried sitting up, but I forced him to lie down.

"You're in a bed at Hogwarts. Miss Delacour is part Veela and healed your bite wounds."

"Please, just call me Fleur."

Bill looked up at her. "Thanks, Fleur. For a moment, I thought I was dead and seeing an angel."

She blushed. He must have been a bit punchy from whatever potion I had given him. Probably too much of it.

Poppy finally returned. "I don't envy the headache Sirius will have, but he should be ok in the morning."

Harry looked very relieved.

"And you, Bill… marvelous job, miss. Thank you for helping. I should keep him overnight but I think there's nothing additional for me to do. She turned to us. "Arthur, Molly, I can set you up here for the night if you wish."

"Please, thank you," Molly said. I knew she wasn't going anywhere after what had happened.

Then I heard Tonks practically yelling at Remus. "Damn it, you are nothing like that monster so stop it!"

We all turned to look. Remus was downright embarrassed. He said quietly, "Nevertheless, you deserve someone younger and whole."

I sighed and interrupted. "Sirius and I both think you're being an idiot, Remus. Too young or too old… not so important." I glanced over at my daughter and then Harry and my eldest for a second. "And how many young people have already have been scarred in this war?"

Molly smiled at Harry and then at Tonks and Remus. "We need all the true love we can get."

Tonks held onto him and although he didn't say anything, I knew he had surrendered. It was about time.

Dumbledore arrived a few minutes after midnight. He approached Kingsley and me and said, "My apologies for not coming sooner. I had to get all the students safely to their dorms and almost had a riot stopping the Ball early. I couldn't tell them the truth quite yet. Minister Bones wasn't happy to be woken up, but she needed to know before the Prophet reported the news."

I nodded in resignation. "Sirius and Bill should stay asleep but will be awake tomorrow morning, so we were going to stay until then to make sure." I paused. No one was at the Burrow so it seemed the ideal time… "Dumbledore, with how busy you are, I think it might be best to make me secret keeper for the Burrow. Is that possible and can you make that change?"

"Yes, I suppose, if you're sure. The nature of the charm is that everyone who has been told will still know, but I'll be unable to tell anyone else. That responsibility will be yours."

"I understand." Unfortunately, I no longer felt comfortable being beholden to him.

"If you insist, then hold out your hands." I did and Dumbledore drew his wand. A small blue orb appeared leaving his abdomen and then it floated to my hands and then disappeared. "It's been done. Now, I can take the students back to their dorms; I sealed the doors for the evening. You're welcome to visit your old Common Room tomorrow to see them if you want. Password is 'garland'"

"Thank you." I nudged my daughter who had drifted off while leaning against Harry. Her mouth was half open and she looked like quite the state with her formal outfit. Harry was awake and had a smile despite everything. His eyes betrayed his worry though. I nudged her awake.

"Dad?

"Hey, Professor Dumbledore will help you lot to your rooms. We will be by tomorrow morning."

Fleur hadn't left Bill's side. I promised we'd see her tomorrow as well.

I usually didn't sleep well in a hospital bed, not that I had nearly the opportunities that most of my children had. But I was so drained, it didn't matter.

The next morning, Molly was already up and tending to Bill by the time I was awake. Sirius still hadn't woken up. Once the initial fuzziness after waking had worn off, I stood next to him. "Hey Dad," he croaked.

"How do you feel?"

"A bit sore, somewhat of a headache, but glad to be feeling anything, I think."

"You want to try to get up and use the loo?"

"Yes, please. I never cared for hospital gowns." I grabbed onto his right hand slowly helped him sit up and then put some weight on his feet. I was worried about dizzy spells. Bill took one step in front of the other until he was confident enough on his own. I went back and put an arm on my wife.

"He'll be ok."

"For now… I'm afraid this is far from the end, dear. I couldn't bear losing you or any of the kids after what happened with my brothers." They had both been killed in the first round of the war.

Once Bill reemerged, I asked, "Feel good enough to walk over to Gryffindor Tower?" He nodded.

I made sure we went slow — probably started frustrating Bill a bit, but I didn't want to take chances. When we reached the door, I gave the password and we went inside.

The Common Room was a bit more crowded than normal for Christmas Day, but most of the students must have gone to the Hall for breakfast. Ron was the first one to see us and waved us over to an area they had staked out.

Harry and Ginny had been stretched out on a couch. They got up and gave us a four-way hug. It looked like all the kids had put on the jumpers that Molly made them each year. At one point, giving them was a necessity with the income we had. By now, it was tradition and we usually got them all a little something extra when shopping for school.

Harry's was red with an "H" and a lightning bolt. Ginny's had the same symbol next to her "G". Ginny hugged her mum a little longer and I think she got the message.

Even so, I pulled my daughter away when I had the opportunity, just to check. "Yes, Dad?" she said, trying a bit hard trying to look innocent.

"I wanted to ask how you and Harry were getting along."

"Brilliant," she said with a grin.

"He's not trying anything he shouldn't?"

"Dad…." she groaned, a bit annoyed, "it's Harry. He's almost being too good."

"You don't deserve anything less, and I didn't expect anything less from him, but girls can make blokes lose their heads."

"Yes, sir." She paused and then said, "Look what he got me for Christmas!" She held her necklace softly in her hand. "It's not too fancy so I can wear it everyday."

I looked at it and struggled to keep my composure. "Make sure you take good care of it." It had to have been worth a thousand galleons, if not more.

"I will. It was his mum's, it's really special."

"And I assume that was a hair bracelet I saw on Harry?"

"Yes. I'm not as good as knitting as Mum, and Harry has everything store-bought he ever needed."

I smiled at her. "I understand, but do you really understand what that usually means?" The hair usually was tantamount to the witch promising the rest of herself.

"I do. And I mean it. I don't expect he'll ask for many years, but I mean it. I really love him, Dad."

I kissed her forehead and thoughts of the prophecy almost broke my heart. Trying to stop her would break hers, though.

Harry interrupted us with a silver tray. "Carrot cake? Dobby made it this morning. He says it's technically a quick bread, so it's ok for breakfast," he said with a smile. "He also brought some fudge and some homemade socks."

"I didn't see him," Ginny said as she took a bite of Harry's piece and turned her attention towards him.

"It was about six-thirty. He had to get back to cooking breakfast and I figured you weren't up." The couple started drifting away with their conversation.

Ron found me a few minutes later. "Dad…"

"Yes?"

"Happy Christmas."

"You too. So is everything worked out with you lot?"

He looked a tad stunned. "Maybe… I hope so. I'd been on pins and needles waiting for a Howler from you or Mum. I started to think you hadn't heard."

I shook my head. "No, I did. George and Fred actually wrote about how things were after Harry was picked for the tournament. They were worried about all three of you," I hastily added before he got upset. "We didn't say anything because I figured you needed to work things out."

"Thanks…"

"But did you ever really not believe Harry? He's been almost a broom to you." And better than at least one of his brothers had been acting

He paused. "I suppose not. Things are just… difficult. It was easier to be mad at him."

"Ron, it's called growing up. You're almost fifteen and time to be your own man, not a copy of Bill or Percy or Harry. Time to figure out what you want. Before an international Quidditch star asks her to another Ball."

He had a sheepish grin. "That was on me. I hope I have another chance."

"I think you will. If not, it wasn't meant to be. But don't be wasting the next opportunity."

"I wish things were easier, like Harry and Ginny."

"No, son, you don't wish things were like what they've been dealt … First, Harry's made his shares of cock-ups, he just is a bit more discreet… between the two of them, Hedwig's been getting plenty of exercise mailing me and your mum. Probably Sirius too. And, Ron, be thankful you are dealing with growing up now. Think about what he had to deal with. Harry never had the chance to be a kid and your sister had to grow up far too early."

He nodded. "Mum's jumper our first year was his first gift that wasn't rubbish… actual rubbish, I mean. I forget."

"He wants you to forget, I think. Things will come to you in time. Your sister… well, she's been blessed with what she's found at her age. Try to be both their friend. They are a bit of a package deal now and I don't see that changing."

As long as they both survived.

 ***Ginny***

I was polishing off my piece of carrot cake, Harry was smiling at me but I could see some hesitation. "Sirius?" I asked.

"Yeah. I'd like to go check on him."

"Sure, let's go."

Bill must have been eavesdropping. "Would you mind if you help me to wherever the Beauxbatons students are? I'd like to thank your friend but Mum and Poppy will have my neck if I try walking it myself."

Harry nodded, "That's fine. It's on the way."

While we were walking, Harry asked Bill plenty of questions about his employers. It figured he would have plenty of dealings with them once he was an adult and had to manage all his holdings. His hand never left mine, even though Bill glanced more than once.

Harry knocked on a door that normally wasn't there most years. An annoyed, half-asleep girl answered., "Yes…?"

Bill took over. "I was hoping to see Miss Delacour, if she's available?"

"One minute."

Fleur came out a in a bit. "Hello, Geeny. Joyeux Noel."

"Happy Christmas." We exchanged kisses on the cheek. "My brother Bill wanted to be properly introduced."

She presented her hand and my brother gently shook it. Bill said, "Miss Delacour, it's a pleasure to meet you while awake. Thank you for healing me yesterday.

"Please, call me Fleur. And I was happy to help."

Harry was unusually quiet. I said, "We were going to check on Harry's godfather. He's still in a hospital bed."

"Sure, I could use ze walk."

Harry and I walked hand-in-hand with Bill and Fleur behind us. I heard her ask, "So, Beel, what do you do when not being fighting hand to hand with a werewolf?"

That earned chuckle from him. "Hopefully that won't be a habit. I'm officially a cursebreaker for Gringott's. I lived in Egypt for a few years, but I decided to come back home last year. Not as much call for cursebreaking her, so I also liaison for some of the bank's bigger clients like Harry here, or whatever else they ask me to do."

Harry glanced back and smiled at him. "All for your sister," he said cheekily.

I turned my head and Fleur had a small grin. "I've alwayz wanted to visit Egypt. I've traveled some on ze continent, but not Africa."

"It was really amazing."

"So, 'arry, what's your godfather'z name?"

"Sirius Black." I heard a stutter in her usual dainty steps. He quickly explained, "Yes, he was sent to Azkaban for murder… he had been accused of leading Voldemort to my parents. But it was actually another friend of theirs. He's been out for the last year."

We were finally in Poppy's domain. Sirius was sitting up and eating some porridge. I said, "Bill, I think we will be here a few minutes."

"Ok. I feel much stronger now. Fleur, would you care to continue our stroll for a little longer?"

"Oui, I'd enjoy zat."

Harry and I slowly walked towards Sirius. "How are you feeling?" he asked.

"Like I've gotten ran over by the Hogwarts Express… twice… pounding headache still. But luckily it was the back of my head, so the ladies won't be sad." He stopped for a second. "Oh, I'm sorry Ginny. Bill looks a lot better than he did yesterday. That little French number doesn't seem to mind."

I smiled at him. "Remus said James was the charming one, anyway."

"Too right. I was always a bit more direct."

Harry asked, "I thought you were going to be out of country still?"

"Well, I had some opportunities that presented themselves. I can't talk about it here and it's not all certain, but it should be some help in the war. How about you both come over for Easter, by then it should be done."

"I'd love to, if Mum can be persuaded."

"Yeah, I'll come but I'd rather have Gin with me."

That was pretty much a constant state with him. I hadn't yet felt smothered by him, so I didn't mind.

"I'll see what I can do," he said. "Did you like the threads for the Ball? Tonks helped with Ginny's of course."

"Yes, thanks. The Ball was wonderful," I said, "though a bit short.'

Sirius looked over and said, "I'm sure there will be plenty more."


	10. Year 4, Part 6

***Ginny***

January fifteen found me eating a piece of toast, a rasher of bacon, and a soft-boiled egg for breakfast. It looked to me a decent sort of day until Parvati gave me her copy of the day's Prophet. She said, "Sorry, but I figured you'd want to see…"

 _Harry Potter: Boy Who Lived or Playboy Extraordinaire?_

 _An exhaustively researched investigation by Rita Skeeter_ _Harry Potter, famous for somehow surviving the killing curse as a child, is becoming infamous among the next generation of witches at Hogwarts as a young man. Since sneaking his way into the Tri-Wizard Tournament (some have suggested with the aid of dark magic), he has toyed with the affections of several witches. Here are the following photographs at the Yule Ball with a Miss Hermione Granger, Ginevra Weasley, and finally the Beauxbatons champion Fleur Delacour, several years his senior._ _Mr. Potter was supposedly escorting Miss Weasley to the Yule Ball. However, his dalliances finally caught up with him and he was seen trying to escape outside the castle, chased there by all three young women. No one knows what was said, but several minutes later, Harry's godfather, previously convicted mass murderer Sirius Black, and Miss Weasley's oldest brother, an employee if the Gringotts goblins, had to be hospitalized, both with life-threatening injuries. We can only assume that there was a violent altercation between them concerning liberties Mr. Potter was taking with one or all of the young ladies._ _Draco Malfoy, a classmate and son of the prominent Lucius Malfoy, told this reporter that he had attempted to help and befriend Harry early their first year at Hogwarts, but was rebuffed._ _Obviously, growing up with muggles has seriously deformed his character and we can only hope he learns his lesson from proper pure-bloods before he lengthens the trail of broken hearts in his wake._

I glanced over at the Slytherin table to see Draco with the biggest, creepiest smile I'd ever seen. I squeezed Harry's hand once and said, "Ignore it. They just want to hurt you."

He nodded and looked in my eyes. He had far too many worry lines for a boy of fourteen.

I didn't tell my boyfriend I wouldn't be taking my own advice. I left breakfast early and staked out the hallway on the way to McGonagall's classroom, which was the first period for us and the Slytherins.

I got myself good and worked up, but stayed in control. When Draco turned the corner with his two goons, I let loose my strongest bat-bogey curse ever. Crabbe and Goyle pulled their wands only to find them on the floor several feet away. While Malfoy writhed on the floor, I spat out, "Listen you spoiled piece of shite. Harry is mine and anyone fool enough to not see that is not worth a knut. Your money will buy friends for only so long and you will be left alone with just your own nastiness."

I turned around and almost ran straight into Professor Slughorn, looking rather astounded. He cancelled the hex but then said, "Before you say a word, Draco, do you really want it to be known that Ginny here took on the three of you on her own and got the better of you?"

Draco looked at me with pure hate and said, "No, I don't. Forget about it. And you, Weaselette, soon enough everyone will see what side is going to win." He and his group slowly rose and trudged off to class.

The professor looked at me and said, "You magnificently stood your ground and that was a brilliant hex. I'm having a little get-together of a few students in the Astronomy Tower tomorrow at seven, I hope to see you there. You can bring a date as well. For now, you ought to get to class before there's more trouble."

Somehow my imminent detention had transformed into an invitation to the Slug Club. I was giving up on trying to figure out most of the professors. I was just grateful he had wandered into the situation instead of my head of house.

After the last class of the day, Cedric Diggory bumped into the four of us in the hallway on the way to drop off our books before supper. Ron and Hermione were currently on speaking terms, but that changed faster than the weather in the Highlands.

The older boy asked, "Harry, have you found your way with that golden egg yet?"

"No, I haven't. I was putting it off until after the holidays."

"Well, try taking a bath with it, mull things over."

Harry paused in an unexpected shock. "Why are you helping?"

"You gave me a warning about the dragons. Now we're square." He then took his leave and a little later, Ron and Hermione went to start studying. My brother had fallen a bit behind when Hermione was chuffed at him about the Ball.

Harry looked puzzled on the rest of the way up. "I wish it was warmer. I'd go take a dip in the lake. The boys' shower doesn't seem like the right spot. Has Hermione ever mentioned a hidden bathtub somewhere?" he asked as we went through the portrait of the Fat Lady.

"No, there's nothing about that in 'Hogwarts, a History'." I joked. "Cedric probably used the Prefects' bath." Tom has been one himself and had made full use of not, desperately valuing his privacy after years of none.

"Doesn't do me a lot of good," he sighed.

Someone else besides Hermione may have an answer… "Dobby?" I called.

Suddenly, the House Elf appeared. "You called, Harry's Weazey?"

I laughed. "You can call me Ginny. I am my own person."

"So sorry, Miss Ginny."

"We were wondering if you knew of a place where Harry could take a dip in some water in privacy."

"Well, there is no place that Dobby can think of with Harry Potter not being a prefect or a teacher. But there is a special room we Elves know, for anyone that can transform itself as needed. House Elves call it the Room of Requirement."

"It could create a pool?" I asked.

"Dobby thinks so, it should be easy for such a powerful wizard as Harry Potter. Walk three times by the wall near the tapestry of Barnabas on the seventh floor, thinking of what you be needing."

"Brilliant," Harry said. "Thanks, Dobby." He bowed and then disappeared.

"Do you have a bathing suit handy?" he asked me.

"Yes, pretty sure."

"Do you want to check this out with me? It was your idea."

"Sure, love to. I'll be right back."

I ran up to my dorm room and had two choices. The suit Mum knew I had and the one she didn't. It was just going to be the two of us, so I decided to be daring and went with the second. I wasn't sure if the room would provide a closet for changing, so I stripped down, put on my deep purple two piece, and put my robes over. I met up with Harry and soon he was pacing across the seventh-floor hallway for a third time and a door appeared.

He cautiously opened the door and I was blasted with the smell of the salty sea. He walked through and I followed. As I did, I thought I heard an echo of a voice. It stopped when I closed the door. Looking around at mounds of white sand, I said, "You don't go halfway, do you Potter?"

He shrugged. "I figured I'd see what it could do. I've always wanted to go to some more beach on the ocean."

Someday I'd make that come true. I smiled at him. "Well, we're not getting wet standing on a beach."

I slipped off my robe and let it fall to the beach. Without turning around, I ran into the water and jumped in. "Come on in, love."

Harry took a second but took off his robe too, revealing a grey pair of shorts and he followed me in with his egg. He leaned over to kiss me, but I put a finger to his lips. "Homework first, dear." He had hungry eyes and I found I was rather pleased that I was causing the reaction.

He pouted for a moment, but he knew he'd never win that battle with me. Finally, Harry opened the egg and we heard the same shrieking sound. Suddenly, Harry dunked the egg in the water and we could hear muffled voices. Our eyes locked and then we both went all the way under the water.

I listened to the song twice before I came up for air. Harry said, "Now I'm all sorts of confused. Who talks underwater? Not the giant squid."

A memory that wasn't mine flashed before my eyes. Tom at a pier, trying to learn some of Hogwarts' secrets from… "There's mer-people there. I'm sure of it."

"Ok, so they are going to take something that's precious to me that I can't replace. I don't really have any heirlooms here except Mum and Dad's photos. I could always buy a new broom… I was thinking of getting a new Firebolt anyway." He stopped for a moment.

I quietly interrupted his thoughts. "Bagman was trying to give a good show with the dragons, whipping the audience up into a frenzy."

"Then that really…" Harry looked into my eyes. "No, no, no!"

I was only about a second behind. "It's going to be a person. The champions getting to have a damsel in distress to save."

"I'm so sorry."

"Hey, not your fault. It's about your turn to save me, anyway," I joked. I was curious if they were going to ask my permission or not before pretending to kidnap me, but I didn't want Harry's guilty feelings to ruin the evening.

"I'll get you out as soon as I can, Gin. I'll just have to figure out how to breathe underwater."

"We'll figure it out." I glanced to one side and then the other with a grin on my face. "In the meantime, you have your girlfriend in a two-piece alone in a private lake…"

I loved Blushing Harry. "I'd be a fool to let that go to waste."

"Exactly. Try to catch me!" I dove under and swam as fast as I could. Once I was about ten yards away, I looked back and then he started the chase.

I had been swimming all my life, but Harry usually didn't do much more than wade. I was quite a bit more maneuverable, but once he started, my short legs couldn't keep my lead. But whenever he closed in, I juked and left him behind.

He needed the practice.

But after about ten minutes, I slowed down near the shore enough for him to catch up. Before I knew it, his arms were around me and pressing me close. I felt his bare chest tight against me and we started snogging with little plans to stop.

Finally, we forced ourselves apart as we began to lose track of our hands. We drifted to dry land and we lay down softly cuddling. No words needed to be said.

The next day at lunch, I remembered something I had forgotten. "Harry, Professor Slughorn invited me to a little party. Did you want to come with?"

He chuckled. "I actually got my own invite. Based on being me, I guess. I was going to ask, but you kept distracting me."

I punched him playfully in the left shoulder. Ron looked at me and shook his head. "Did you get an invite?"

"No, 'course not." And Hermione would've told me if she had been invited. I swore he had some bias against muggleborns, despite earlier protests.

"Well, how about Harry take Hermione and you can come with me, dear brother?"

"Is, um, any students from the other schools going?"

"Just Hogwarts, I think."

"Sure, I'll go then. Too boring around after class here with no Quidditch."

Harry nudged Hermione, who was revising over a bowl of pears. "Slug Club?"

"Sure, might be interesting." She didn't seem too convinced.

That evening while getting ready for bed, I felt a bit of a twinge. I looked at the calendar and signed. I started walking towards the door and Hermione asked, "Where are going?"

"I was going to the kitchen for some chamomile tea."

"You really shouldn't be out after curfew, especially by yourself."

Well, I had been planning to get Harry's cloak l, but didn't want to say anything in front of Lavender z even if she was buried in her magazine. Still, my run-ins with Malfoy were becoming too much of a habit to be safe. Still more than one way...

"Winky?" I called with a bit of uncertainty. She wasn't mine after all, but Harry had told her…

Suddenly, she popped in the room. Lavender screeched at the surprise. "Yes Miss Ginny?"

"Could you get me some chamomile tea with a bit of honey?"

She nodded, "Yes, miss. Winky will be right back."

Hermione was staring. "Who was that?"

"Winky. Mr. Crouch sacked his elf and he took her in along with Dobby."

"Harry mentioned Dobby, but…"

Winky popped back. "Miss Ginny's tea is all ready."

"Thanks."

Hermione asked, "Excuse me, Winky? So you are working for Harry like Dobby?"

Winky was scandalized at the suggestion. "No, Miss Muggle-born. Winky would never want to be getting pay like Dobby. Winky is proud to be bound to the Potter family." She smiled and disappeared.

Hermione's expression wasn't much better than Winky's had been. "Harry owns her, like a slave?"

This was too late for this conversation. "He offered the same deal as Dobby and she didn't want it."

"He still should have not allowed that."

Lavender spoke up, "I'm more interested in why she appeared to you, Ginny. If she's Harry's."

This was too big of a headache for a cuppa. "Harry told her to help me when asked."

She didn't seem too convinced. It probably had more to do with our courtship arrangement, but that was something we didn't want splayed about school. Might be too late anyway.

I looked at both of them. "I'm finishing my tea and then going to sleep. Good night!" I closed the curtains to my bed and did just that.

Hermione was too tenacious to let it be. Harry had a bite of eggs in his mouth the next meeting went he was accosted. "How can you own a house elf after how Dobby was treated?"

Harry looked generally upset at the implication. I was about to tell her to shut it, but he squeezed my hand. "It's not like that. I did what she wanted me to do."

"She deserves better. They all do."

"I'm not their mum."

"Ron, back me up!"

"Well," he sputtered, "how about you talk to them. Or the ones in the kitchen."

"What ones in the kitchen?"

My bro shrugged and said, "Who do you think makes all the food?"

Her eyes opened wide and she dropped her pastry onto the plate and pushed it to the middle of the table. "I'm not hungry anymore."

She took out a book and began to read until it was class time.

I really wasn't looking forward to Professor Slughorn's party now. Plus, I didn't really have anything semi-formal to wear to the Slug Club and my Yule dress seemed too much. So I kept my school robes on. Hermione copied me and thankfully the boys did too, though they probably didn't even think about it.

Professor Slughorn greeted everyone as we walked in. "Hello Miss Weasley, nice of you to bring your brother. We have some hors d'oeuvres and the main course will be about half an hour."

Ron soon had a plate with some cheese and sausages. I bumped into an older girl from Hufflepuff while Harry was being trapped by Slughorn. "Ginny Weasley," I said, extending my hand to shake."

"Yes, the latest casualty from the Prophet. I'm probably next, with my aunt and all. I'm Susan Bones."

"Oh. Nice to meet you. Yeah, I imagine you'll get your turn."

"It's why I'm invited, I'm sure. How about you? No offense, but…"

My family wasn't that important, which I was starting to appreciate. "I hexed Malfoy and impressed the professor."

She laughed. "I wish I could have gotten in on that, but no chance now." Susan was someone that I could like.

Ron poked me and whispered, "Look who just walked in."

A tall, dark-skinned witch walked in. She had sandy-brown hair and had some muscle. Even without the Harpies jersey, I'd never miss her. "No way… that's Gwenog."

Ron tugged at my arm as I started walking towards her. "No elbows in butter dishes, now."

"Ha-ha," I said sarcastically. Harry had already turned around and literally bumped into her.

"Sorry," I heard him say, "Miss Jones?"

She eyed him suspiciously. "Yes, you got me. I'm surprised, most wizards wouldn't admit following the Harpies."

"Well, my girlfriend is… here she is now… she's a huge fan and a Chaser on the Gryffindor team."

My heart was beating faster than normal. "Miss, Jones, I've been a huge fan of yours. I had a poster from your rookie year until it was blown up by a Death Eater. You're… I'm glad to meet you."

She smiled. "That's quite the compliment, Miss…"

"Ginny Weasley. If you recognize the name, it's from a horrid Prophet article."

"So that would make you Harry Potter?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Well, Ginny, the only thing the Prophet ever prints worth reading is the statistics page. Hard to lie about that. So, are you any good?"

"I think I did ok for my first year."

"Gin was our highest scoring Chaser," Harry insisted on praising me. "We would have won the Cup if I hadn't been rubbish the last game."

"Well, I may need to see a Gryffindor match next year."

I couldn't help but grin. "Wow... thanks. Ron, did you hear…" I turned around and my brother wasn't there. "Where'd he go?"

Harry said, "Well, he's pulls for Chudley, so he may be nursing a grudge after the Harpies shut them out…"

Gwenog laughed at Harry's guess. "I guess he's entitled then. Their new owner thought throwing all those galleons at players would immediately turn things around, but he still hasn't learned that seven good players doesn't always mean one great team."

I looked around. I didn't see a bushy-haired witch either. Probably not a coincidence.

Slughorn called us to dinner a few minutes later. As I had guessed, Ron and Hermione reappeared together. We took our seats and started on the pumpkin soup. The professor began the conversation. "I'd like to thank you all for coming, especially Miss Gwenog Jones, for accepting at the last minute."

She nodded. "I always enjoy returning to Hogwarts."

The professor tried having a few words with most of the students at the table. By the time we were done with the soup, it was Harry's turn. He was asked, "I have been meaning to inquire, how you came about those distractions for the dragon?"

"Those were made by Fred and George Weasley, Professor. They have a knack for creating that sort of thing."

"It was quite marvelous. And you are still insisting you don't know how your name came out of the goblet?"

"No, not at all. Wish I did.'

"Pity." He turned to a seventh-year Slytherin. "Emma, I hoped my recommendation helped?"

"Yes it did. I just received an offer from the Ministry last week in fact."

"Excellent. Of course, your parents both have unblemished records there as well." He turned to Hermione. "And you, Miss Granger, you have done outstanding in your classes so far. What do your parents do?"

"They are dentists."

"Excuse me?"

"Dentists. They are muggle healers who specialize in cleaning and fixing teeth."

"Fascinating," he said, but didn't seem to mean it.

He moved on to the next student.

The party broke up around ten. After my customary goodnight snog with Harry, I went up to my room. Lavender and Parvati were already asleep. "Ginny," Hermione whispered, "have a minute?"

"Sure."

I hopped up in her bed, pulled the drapes, and put up a silencing charm. "I really don't like that man," she said. "Malfoy's one thing, he's a creep to everyone. But the professor, he'd be decent except for his prejudices."

I nodded my head. "There's plenty like that out there. Bill once told me the only way Tom almost won last time was so many families agreed with what he was doing. Maybe his methods upset their sensibilities, but they didn't try to stop him either."

"It's about respect. If pure-bloods grow up treating house elves like rubbish, when they are intelligent but different, it's not too much a stretch to treat people that you consider different like that too. I'm not much better than an elf as far as Malfoy is concerned."

I retorted, "Who cares what he thinks?"

"A lot more than should. But they do. Your family could be safe with the Death Eaters if they wanted to keep quiet. I don't have that privilege."

"We'd never do that. And it's not like we're best mates. They tried to kill me second year, remember?"

"Only because Malfoy wanted to cause your dad trouble. They'd kill me for sport or for being too good at magic."

I didn't bother telling her what they would do to a pure-blood unmarried witch that wasn't under Tom's protection.

She continued, "I know you and Harry would never be abusive, but you could be. Others are. They deserve basic legal rights."

"I agree. They should be able to follow their dreams like anyone else. I don't think skipping breakfast will get them that though."

"You're right. I'm not giving up on this. Just… need to do some more research and change tactics."

I yawned, tired from everything that was going on I side and outside of me. "Well, you won't be able to help them until our bigger problem is fixed. After that, I'm sure Harry will fund whatever campaign you want to start."

"He would, wouldn't he. I should apologize to him."

"I'm sure he knows you didn't mean to be hurtful."

She sighed. That was too heavy to end the conversation on before bed, so I added, "On another note… is there something going on with you and Ron, or you and Krum?"

I flustered Hermione, which was a rare accomplishment. "Krum and me, you mean the Ball? That was really just having fun. Not everyone going to the dance was deciding to go steady. He's nice but a lot older but the distance and his Quidditch commitments… I don't feel strongly enough for it to be worth the effort."

"Plus you got to see Ron get jealous."

"I swear, that was not the point. Though… not a downside. I think I like him but I'm not sure how much thinking he's done about it." If any.

"He's not quite fifteen," I said. Though sometimes I thought it was fifteen going on twelve, but he meant well. Ron was the youngest in my family in some ways.

"I don't want to push him. I already have a reputation as being too bossy, and I really want it to be his idea if it happens."

"And if it doesn't?"

"Nothing's happened that would keep us from staying friends."

She had already answered more of my questions than was necessary, so I didn't push her anymore. I could see things going either way with them. I closed my eyes and silently played with my ring until I fell asleep.

 ***Arthur***

I am only had a few hours on a Saturday morning before we needed to be home for lunch. Molly had invited Sirius, Remus, and Tonks to eat with us. Remus and Tonks had been casually dating since Christmas but with growing anti-werewolf sentiment after the attacks in Hogsmeade added with him being outed in a recent article attacking Dumbledore, he still worried.

I stood in front of Gringotts with a parcel of green plants wrapped up in brown paper. Harry had asked for me to get some via his owl. Hedwig was waiting at the Burrow to deliver it back to him.

Sirius finally arrived and was dressed in a brown robe and black dragonhide boots. "Good morning, Arthur," he said as he shook my hand. "What do you have there?"

"Harry asked me to get some gillyweed for him."

"The second task is going to be something underwater?"

"I imagine. Neville gave Harry the idea after Ginny's insisted he ask for help. Sometimes he still acts like he is alone."

Sirius nodded. "He's getting better, but what happened to him… he's still not alright. It's good he has someone like Ginny who is strong enough to shake sense into him occasionally." He paused and I guessed Harry wasn't the only one still healing. He continued, "Well, let's go take care of business."

I wasn't quite sure why he wanted me there. Sirius liked his surprises.

Sirius and I entered the bank and we're shuffled to Griphook, the goblin that had become the official account manager for Sirius and Harry. "I believe you had two matters that needed our attention today, Mr. Black?

"Yes, indeed. Both dealing with some estates. Firstly, I'm naming my godson Harry Potter as my sole heir. I have no issue of my own or have any plans in changing that."

Griphook took some notes on a piece of parchment.

Sirius added, "Also, pursuant to a formal courtship agreement, Ginevra Weasley has an equal share unless she decides to break the arrangement. I also have a signed declaration from Harry…" He passed Griphook a piece of paper that had an unmistakable blood spot. "He's naming Ginevra as his sole heir."

"Sirius, would you kindly explain…"

"Harry got the idea when I told him I was filling out my paperwork. He's a lot more worried about his chance of a future than he lets on. If something happens to either of us, he wants to make sure Ginny… that she can live the life she wants. His words."

"I appreciate the gesture, but…"

Griphook slammed a stamp down twice. "All done."

Sirius said, "You don't need to tell her. I wanted you to know though. Just in case. The law gets awful murky without a will if not one of the Sacred Twenty-eight. And I think the papers are safest here now."

Griphook said, "And you will be pleased to know that your request on the execution of the Lestrange will has been granted."

Sirius grinned. "Brilliant." He looked to me and explained. "It's taken hundreds of hours by solicitors, but since Bellatrix and Rodolphus have life sentences in Azkaban, I was able to have their will declared to be in force... however, there is no formal will since they were relying on familial inheritance laws like most ancient families. There's no legitimate Lestrange not in Azkaban, so the estate falls to Bellatrix's maiden house. Black."

Griphook said, "She does have a sister that has sixty days to protest, after which all of their assets become under your control, Mr. Black." I realized Narcissa had her first test before her as Sirius signed several documents.

As we walked out of the conference room, Sirius had an optimistic air about him. It wasn't a very traditional victory, but what he had done could very well save a lot of lives.

Of course, mine would be forfeit if we dawdled anymore before getting back to the Burrow. I was about to walk out of the bank to apparate, but Sirius stopped me. "One more stop… I have someone wanting to gate crash lunch. I couldn't tell you earlier with security and all…"

He pulled me into a smaller, dimly-lit room. A witch appeared behind the door after it was closed. My eyes took a moment to adjust to the light. "Minister Bones…" I whispered.

"Hello, Arthur, Sirius. Sorry for the surprise but I'm trying to be careful without looking it. The goblins did agree to let us apparate from this room for the next two minutes, so if I can side-along with you, that should let me pass through the protections."

I was about to take her hand, but Sirius said, "Who else did I say would be there?"

She answered, "You two, Arthur's wife Molly, Remus, and Auror Tonks."

"Ok, Arthur Just wanted to double-check it was you, Minister."

She nodded. I took her hands and hoped to Merlin I didn't splinch her.

We thankfully arrived all in one piece. I escorted my guests in. Molly was finishing things in the kitchen, wearing her everyday robes. She called out, "Arthur dear, Tonks said to expect an extra for lunch? Do you know who…"

She turned around and almost dropped her roast chicken. "My stars… Minister Bones. Arthur, you could have…"

The minister saved me. "It's my fault, Mrs. Weasley. I insisted on the secrecy."

Molly tried to collect herself. "Well, then… luncheon is ready, so please everyone find a seat."

We made our way to the dining room, where Remus and Tonks were already seated. Tonks had a mischievous look on her face… and orange hair. "Just blending in… good afternoon, Minister."

After the food was passed around, Bones started. "Thank you for your hospitality on such short notice. There's been events that have convinced me that Voldemort has returned, though he is being uncharacteristically patient. When my successor in the DMLE came to me with an unusual request regarding the Lestrange estate, I knew that we needed to meet privately."

Sirius said, "We're just doing what we can. That was actually Remus' idea."

"You've done more than most. Unfortunately, my efforts have been stymied so far. Dumbledore and I were going to submit legislation to remove some of the anti-werewolf laws in place." There wasn't a lot but they were very hurtful to those affected. One prevented Remus from being Harry's guardian because of his condition, for example.

Remus said, "And then at Christmas, an untransformed Greyback nearly chewed Bill's face clean off."

"Yes, unfortunately, that made any chance at the changes impossible. The Wizengamot became convinced that the incident was orchestrated by Greyback and those we captured were earning the right to be changed by him. No one has thought of the truth."

Tonks said, "Then we tell them!"

I sighed. "No one will believe it, because they would be too afraid to believe, despite what Dumbledore thinks."

The minister continued, "I have to agree with that sentiment. But it means that the ministry has to treat this as a criminal issue instead of a war. Greyback is the only one associated with Voldemort that is wanted and at large. Lucius Malfoy and all the rest were declared not guilty or the charges buried or bribed away and so I can't officially do anything."

Molly said, "So the aurors can't prevent anything, just try to catch the Death Eaters afterward a crime."

"It's worse than that," Remus added. "I maintain a few contacts with others of my kind. Greyback is starting to turn some heads, saying we'll never be treated normally, so we should cease trying to act normal. The overreaction by polite society after the attack could well lead to more violence by other werewolves. He's working on brewing a terribly nasty cycle."

"Spending time this last summer with two bright kids who grew up with muggles," I noted, "really showed me how deep some of our prejudices lie. It may be too late to fix what we've ignored."

The minister nodded. "Unfortunately, I serve at the pleasure of the Wizengamot." They were half the problem at least and could call for a vote of no confidence at any point if enough of them felt threatened. "So my support will have to be subtle until I've solidified power. Auror Tonks, I've made sure Rufus knows you are going to be on special assignments for me from time to time. That should give you cover when you need it."

She then handed out a piece of paper to each of us. "This is a blanket pardon for each of you, one power I do have. The effective start date is a random point between when I took office and now. The end date is blank. If I am sacked or worse, you can fill in that day."

Sirius asked, "Why…?"

"Because you are the only ones taking the fight to the enemy. Even Dumbledore seems to concentrate on preservation rather than advancement at this time. We'll need your support without worrying about trumped-up charges. Sirius, here are another dozen to distribute if you need them. Please be careful with them."


	11. Year 4, Part 7

***Ginny***

I was fidgeting while reading my assignment for Charms the evening before the second task. It was on summoning and banishing objects but my head was elsewhere. Harry was next to me working on the same. Finally, he gently put his hand over mine and gazed at me with those emerald eyes I loved.

"I really don't want to do this," I said.

"Flitwick didn't give us that much to read…"

"Prat." He knew I wasn't talking about homework.

He smiled. "The Ginny I know doesn't let people try to control her."

"Not even a roguishly handsome boyfriend?" I was going to see how far he'd take this.

Harry kissed my forehead. "I'd be a very badly hexed bloke if I tried."

Good answer. "Too right." I tried hiding a yawn. "We both have a big day tomorrow," I said and we gave each other our goodnights. I hope he would get a decent sleep. His nights had been interrupted at least weekly with visions of Tom.

I was woken up far too early to a particularly inquisitive-looking cat. I was about to toss it across the room but my brain started working before I chucked my head of house into a footlocker. I sat up, looked around, and saw Hermione already up and getting dressed. We did our best to let Lavender and Parvati stay asleep.

The cat left the room and I dressed into jeans and a tee (no way was I going to risk swimming in school robes). After a moment's thought, I slipped in my wand holster under my left sleeve.

Professor McGonagall met us outside Gryffindor Tower in her human form and escorted Hermione and I to a makeshift shack near the Black Lake. It was not much more than a lean-to and my skin tingled as I approached it.

The girl Cedric was seeing, Cho Chang was there in her robes, sitting in a wooden chair and waiting. A minute later and a younger version of Fleur appeared, shaking like a leaf. They served us some pastries and I had a few bites but no one else seemed hungry.

Mr. Crouch was there in an expensive suit looking on while Ludo Bagman was giving instruction while dressed in very nice robes. "You four lovely ladies have all been picked to participate in today's task. Your champion has been told that hidden inside the lake will be what they will miss most, and so we decided it would be most motivating to use their dates to the Yule Ball, except in Miss Delacour's case where her sister Gabrielle was available."

Did we have the Yule Ball just so Ludo could take a guess as to who was sweet on whom? I wouldn't want to be Hermione after this.

He waved his hands downward trying to stop any protests. "Now, the challenge has a time limit of sixty minutes. You'll be put into a hibernation trance that will keep you from needing to breathe. You'll wake up when you break the surface, hopefully in the arms of your hero. If the time expires, an adult will get you out... Please take your seat and remain calm."

He was placing the charm alphabetically. Ludo quickly had Cho dead asleep and then Fleur's sister. Then Hermione and then he looked at me…

"No. You're not putting me to sleep."

Ludo took a step back in surprise. "Excuse me?"

"Mr. Bagman, I didn't sign up for this. Of course, neither did Harry if we're keeping a tally. Given the record of how things have gone so far, I'm not going to be left unconscious and defenseless on a pier or at the bottom of a lake. Also, the task is stupid anyway; if I ever was at the bottom of a lake, I wouldn't depend on my boyfriend to get me out, even if he is Harry Potter."

"Miss Weasley, most girls would consider this an honor. If you don't want to be a willing participant, I'll find someone else who is."

Low blow. Just what Harry didn't need was him splashed over the Prophet with Lavender "falling out of her dress" Brown. I gritted my teeth. "Fine. I'll go along for Harry's sake. But no charms from you. Professor McGonagall, I'm sure you could cast a spell that would keep me breathing and awake. I'll give you my word to not try to escape on my own, but I'm not going to be blacked out."

Ludo finally nodded as my professor gave me an actual smile and carefully drew her wand. "Yes, Miss Weasley. I'll put you in a bubble head charm, it'll last plenty long. And I'll make sure the other girls aren't left alone prior to the task either."

Half an hour later, we moved to the lake. Ludo and Mr. Crouch took Cho and Hermione under the water to wherever they were going to be tied up. Forty minutes later, they reappeared. Mr. Crouch took Gabrielle and Ludo cautiously took my hand. I definitely didn't have a pleasant look on my face.

I took one step into the lake and wanted to know who the bloody idiot was to have a water challenge in the dead of winter. Professor McGonagall quickly waved her wand twice around me and I felt warmer and also could barely see the shimmer of the bubble around my head that would give me air. I plunged in all the way and waited for Ludo to dive in.

Being a perfectly capable swimmer, I followed him through the lake rather than being tugged around like a sack of potatoes. After a few minutes, the bottom dropped suddenly and I was left wondering how deep the lake really was. I looked down and saw nothing but murky blackness with only Ludo's wand providing some light. At one point, I thought I saw the shadow of the giant squid, but it also could have just been my eyes tricking me.

We finally reached the outskirts of what must have been the mer-people's village. There were several caves that had some different plants decorating the entrances, definitely not growing wild. Then I saw two blurry bodies in the center that gradually turned into Hermione and Cho as we got closer. Next to them were two stakes. Mr. Crouch tied Gabrielle to one of them and I reluctantly stood next to the last one and Ludo wrapped a vine around me. It was tight enough that it was a bit uncomfortable, but I endured it.

Then the two men left and it was me and the other three girls. I realized a flaw in my plan — being alone at the bottom of a lake is rather boring.

Eventually, some of the village inhabitants came out. I stretched my neck the best I could to see them. There wasn't anything in particular, just what I assumed were families going about their day. They looked happy. I wished I could get to know them better, but students weren't supposed to be down here and I couldn't speak mermish anyway. That part of my memories of Tom weren't strong enough for me to want to attempt it.

I thought of what living under the water would be like and I must have drifted off for a little bit. I opened my eyes and saw someone with the head of a shark swimming towards me. I couldn't tell by the legs if it was Cedric or Krum, but then he centered on Hermione. I was a tad nervous that Viktor wouldn't be able to get through the ropes without getting a bite of my friend in the process, but he ended up managing. Once she was free, he too her in his arms and quick sped upwards.

A few minutes later or so (it was difficult to tell time under the water), a bubble-headed Cedric Diggory showed. He used a spell to cut Cho's ropes and they too were gone, leaving Gabrielle and me behind.

I was starting to get nervous for Harry, wondering what had gone wrong. Just when I was believing I was going to have to wait for Ludo to come get me after time expired, Harry and Fleur arrived together. He looked fine but Fleur had nasty welts on her arms, feet, and even neck. Harry came towards me and smiled when he noticed I was awake.

He reached towards his leg and produced a small knife that Sirius had gave him. It was charmed to be able to unlock most doors that had been guarded against alohamora. However, with its jagged edge it also seemed to function well cutting vines. It made short work of my bonds and after waiting for Fleur to be done with her sister, Harry and I swam together towards air.

As soon as I broke the surface, my bubble disappeared. "What took you so long?" I demanded as I tread water next to him. "We've been practicing swimming for weeks."

"Fleur… I thought I was doing well, but I ran into Fleur being attacked by grindylows. They were swarming, much worse than with me or the others, and she seemed to be in a lot of pain. She was getting really bad marks wherever they touched her. I couldn't leave her there." He looked down and then back in my eyes. "Maybe it's stupid, she probably would have been ok."

I guess it was my turn to be a git that day. "No, dear… I'm sorry. You shouldn't… don't apologize for caring too much. I'm just not happy that either of us had to do this." I put a hand on his chest and smiled. "You stay exactly who you are. But we better start swimming back or we're both going to be icicles."

"Yes, Gin."

Within a few minutes we were being picked up And placed onto a pier by Hagrid. He also gave us each a towel that we wrapped ourselves in. Fleur and her sister were along soon after. Before he knew it, she had him in a tight hug. "Thank you, 'arry. You saved me and mon petite soeur." Even though I knew I didn't have to worry, I couldn't help but feel a tinge of jealousy at the knockout in a bathing suit with her arms around Harry.

When she finally let go, he was more than a bit red at the attention. "It was nothing," he quietly said.

"I'm freezing. Where's some bloody dry clothes?" I demanded.

Harry smiled, "Are you a witch or aren't you?" He pointed his wand at me and soon my shirt and pants were bone dry.

"I'm still cold."

"Another warming charm?"

"No, something better…" I launched myself at Harry and kissed him with every ounce of strength I had left.

He wasn't prepared and ended up tripping backwards, with me tumbling over him.

"Ginevra Weasley!"

Ugh, that could only be… "Mum, what are you doing here?" I tried picking myself back up as quickly as possible.

"Family members were invited to the last two tasks. We weren't told until it was too late to let you know. Sirius and your dad are visiting with Amos Diggory."

"Oh, well, glad you're here."

She looked a little cross to me. "Good. You need to learn that there is a time and a place and an age…"

Harry interrupted as he put a gentle hand around my shoulders. "My fault, Mrs. Weasley. I've just been worried about her and then I slipped."

Professor McGonagall saved me from words I didn't need to say. "Mr. Potter, this way, they are about to announce the scores." He kissed my hand and then had to leave again.

The starch was gone from Mum's argument at least. A minute later, Mr. Crouch stood, ready to announce the scores. Karkaroff looked very happy, Madame Maxime was fuming, while Crouch looked upset as well.

"Returning first with his hostage after using a brilliant partial transformation, Viktor Krum has been awarded forty-five points." The news was followed by gleeful cheers from the Durmstrang section.

"Cedric Diggory made use of a bubble head charm and came in shortly after for second and is awarded forty points." He received much enthusiastic applause from Hogwarts, minus Slytherin.

Then Crouch paused for a moment. "Unfortunately, we have had some irregularities in the task that must be dealt with. Miss Fleur Delacour required assistance from Harry Potter to complete her task. She has broken a cardinal rule of the tournament and we have therefore been forced to reluctantly bar her from the third task and disqualify her from the Cup."

Fleur looked shocked and heartbroken, and then I heard plenty of French words that I would not have learned in a school setting. She regained her composure and stood there silently next to the other champions.

Once the jeers had died to a soft roar, he finished. "For providing said assistance, Harry Potter is docked his points from the second task but will still participate in the final task... Thank you and I hope everyone will have a pleasant after and return for the third task on Mayday."

We caught up with Harry a few minutes later. He was trying to apologise to Fleur. Finally, she said, "They've 'ad it in for me since ze selection. I was never winning."

But her headmistress wasn't giving up as easily.

 ***Arthur***

Sirius nearly yanked my arm out of socket as he dragged me towards the judges table. Madam Maxime was furious, towering over Bagman and Crouch. "Zis is an outrage! First you give 'ogwarts a second champion and then you remove Beauxbatons' only participant!"

Crouch held his ground, which was surprising in itself. He calmly responded. "There are quite firm rules regarding interference that Miss Delacour broke."

Maxime said, "Those rules are to prevent unfair tampering, not assisting a champion who is in real danger."

Dumbledore quietly stood by while Karkaroff said, "Bagman, Crouch, and I felt differently and we voted for the disqualification. Apparently Grindylows react badly to Veela. Quite unfortunate that the champions' course led them through a mass of them." He gave a tight, sinister grin.

One look at Maxime and I didn't need to guess who had picked the course. She took one step towards him. "You are a pig."

"Next time, I suggest making sure you have a worthy human contestant. One with pure blood."

To her credit, Maxime didn't toss him in the lake right then and there. Sirius interjected. "She may not be a hundred percent human, but you are a total jackass."

Crouch wasn't impressed by his cleverness. "If you don't have anything useful to say…"

Sirius continued, "If Fleur can be disqualified and prevented from entering the third task, why didn't any of you think try to do anything about Harry? He could have gotten himself removed from being forced to participate in something he never wanted."

Crouch said, "You seriously think he wants out? After all the effort he expended to cheat his way in?"

I had had enough. "You're more of an idiot than ever. If all of you thought Harry snuck his way in, why didn't three of you vote him out?"

Dumbledore look sadly tired. "I tried, Arthur. Maxime and I voted to disqualify him based on his age, but no one else joined us."

Karkaroff said arrogantly, "He signed himself up, he gets to take his own medicine, as you English would say."

Crouch added, "It's not against the rules to be underage, that was a qualification Dumbledore himself added this time 'round. It would set a dangerous precedent. Next time the tournament is held, what would prevent the host school from voting out the competition?"

"And you, Ludo? I thought I knew you."

"It would have been bad form, Arthur."

I saw a something in the way his eyes refused to meet mine. Unfortunately, I did know Ludo too well. "No... Sirius, what are the odds on Harry winning?"

He looked at me oddly. "Not sure, I think Bill mentioned something about them being twenty to one before the first task." Some of the goblins at Gringotts had a side business as bookees.

"How much are you in for?" I yelled.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"You're a rubbish liar, Ludo." I looked around at the five judges. "If anything happens to my son… He's just a boy. He never asked for any of this… But that's never mattered to any of you."

I turned around and started to walk away as Maxime started a second round with the other judges. If my guess about Ludo was right, it threw the entire contest into even more suspicion. For as much as the wizarding world claimed to care about their children, none of them were doing a good job showing it. Least of all…

"Arthur, a moment please." Dumbledore called from behind. I turned around and saw him following Sirius and I. We were out of a whisper's earshot of the rest of the judges. "I regret that I wasn't able to stop this. I didn't think Harry needed to know about what happened, the poor boy doesn't need more distractions."

I corrected my earlier statement. "He hasn't been allowed to be a boy since his parents died. Certainly not here. Your action and inaction has forced him to be a man before his time. I'm just thankful he's becoming a good one."

Before he could say anything else, I added, "We are telling him everything after the third task. Everything. If we expect him to make adult decisions, we at least give him the knowledge he needs"

Sirius said, "I completely agree. And we might as well tell Ginny, Ron, and Hermione. They are a bright bunch, one of them may have some insight into Ginny's prophecy, once everything is brought together."

Dumbledore twitched.

"You already have a guess," I said, trying to not sound too accusing.

"I have… an inkling. I need some more time to verify, but I'll tell them and you that I think I know after the tournament concludes. You have my word."

Sirius said, "We'll hold you to that. These secrets aren't helping. There's too much that will be lost if something happens to you."

 ***Ginny***

Hermione blurted out, "For the last time, Lavender, I just went to the ball with Viktor. And that was almost four months ago!" It was the day before Easter weekend and the gossip train was boring full-stream towards the end of term.

Lavender was just taking the mickey on her, mostly. A picture of her in Viktor's arms had made its way to the front cover of the Prophet after he won the second task.

I almost ran into a Beauxbatons girl as she darted across the hall. She looked back and gave a look more sour than Hippogriff milk. Her school had decided to stay on the small chance that Fleur would be allowed to compete as the French Ministry was formally protesting what had happened. Most of the students were not happy about being here though. Fleur was actually the only one that was being pleasant to us.

We walked into Snape's classroom and immediately quieted. He had stopped singling Harry and I out, but he got Lavender and Parvati last week for giggling as they walked in. Hermione took the seat next to Ron, who was on Harry's right. I sat behind him, allowing me a nice view of his hair and ears.

The professor began his lecture. "You won't need your books for our time today, because we will be reviewing some spells that many do not believe you should see at your age. These three spells are known informally as the Unforgiveables, because the use of any of them can earn a lifetime sentence to Azkaban."

He actually paused for one moment to allow us to catch up with our note-taking. "The first one of these is the Imperius curse. Several prominent members of wizarding society were attacked with this curse during the previous war against the dark lord and were unjustly accused of helping him. With this curse…"

At that, he took a cover off a nearby cage that was revealed to contain several mice. He cast the spell on one of the creatures, who immediately started viciously attacking the rest of the group. A moment later, it stopped just as abruptly. It climbed to the top of the cage where Snape let it out. It climbed down the side and then stood perfectly still.

"And once under the curse, the victim is usually defenseless... The next of the Unforgiveables is the Cruciatus curse, which causes extreme pain throughout the entire body."

The mouse writhed and wiggled uncontrollably and let out horrible screeches, as if it was slowly and terribly being killed, one inch at a time. Hermione cried out, "Stop it!" Next to her, Neville was so pale I didn't know how he had avoided fainting.

Snape relented but announced, "Five points from Gryffindor for interrupting a lecture." He stared at Hermione, daring her to talk back. "The Imperius curse can be fought by a few, and the Cruciatus does not leave any permanent physical damage, although the weak-minded can be severely traumatized by the memory of the pain. However, the last Unforgiveable has no counter and is quite fatal if it makes its target."

A green flash illuminated the classroom. Harry stiffened for a moment — just long enough for me to notice — and the mouse went limp. "The Avada Kedavra is a favorite of the dark lord's, but usually only used after he has dispensed the other two to his pleasure. The only one to survive is Mr. Potter and there has been no explanation why he was so… fortunate. The chances of a repeat performance are quite slim so I would dispel any notion that any of you would survive a similar encounter."

The rest of the period was spent with us taking turns being imperiused by Snape. He said Dumbledore insisted we learn how to fight against the curse. Snape had us assembled in lines, so I was immediately after Harry. Snape had set up a bit of an obstacle course that he had directed every other student through, though some seemed to resist more than others. Hermione and Ron went through the course but both managed to bruise their shins several times. The first step was to climb on top of a desk and jump off.

Harry slowly climbed up the desk but instead of jumping off, he barely hopped in place once. Snape's scowl grew more intense. He tried over and over. I couldn't hear anything but I could almost feel a crackle in the air.

Finally, Harry fell over backwards, off the desk and towards the stone floor. Luckily for him, I broke his fall. I had imagined something similar to this scenario several times, but not exactly. I took what I could get though. Harry took a deep breath and then sat up. He turned around and then helped me up. "Sorry, Gin."

"Anytime, dear." Ron rolled his eyes at me and I winked back.

"An admirable attempt, Mr. Potter. Though you still took far too long to fight back to have mattered if this was a matter of life and death. Your turn, Miss Weasley, if you're done acting as his mattress."

Snicker from Malfoy's corner of the room at the double meaning. "For the time being, professor." I smoothed out my robe and stood before him.

I heard a voice urging me to climb onto the desk. It seemed like a good idea and the voice was very persuasive. I put my right foot onto the chair and shifted my weight onto it. I lifted up my left leg onto the tabletop and turned. My head was flooded with memories of my first year. Tom controlling my every step as I walked outside, strangling roosters. Writing on the wall in their blood and speaking in an unearthly hiss. Something that I couldn't understand, but that…

I had to fight. Harry would die if I couldn't be strong enough. I felt a pulse of energy leave my body and suddenly the voice was gone.

My senses unfogged and I heard a roar of murmurs. At the front of the room, Snape was flat up against the chalkboard, his wand on the floor. He quickly stooped down to pick it up and angrily said, "Class dismissed."

It was the first time he had ever failed to give us homework. We all shuffled out quickly before he changed his mind. Once we were out, I forced myself to ask Hermione, "What the hell happened?" Ron and Harry caught up to us, just as interested.

She looked surprised. "I was about to ask you! You started climbing up the desk like everyone else and then…"

"Bam!" Ron said. "Some sort of banishing or disarming spell. Bloody wicked. And you did that wandless! Snape's face was priceless, sis."

"I didn't know what I was doing," I tried explaining. "I just… I started remembering when Tom controlled me and I…" I paused trying to describe it. "I wanted Harry to be proud of me."

He slipped his arm around my back, as low as he could in public, and drew me close. "I am, Gin. I always am."


	12. Year 4, Part 8

***Arthur***

Molly and I stepped through the floo to Number 12 Grimmauld Place and we were met with a very happy Sirius. "Gringotts finished moving everything out of the Lestrange vault and into one owned by someone much better looking."

I grinned and shook my head in disbelief. Narcissa had pulled through. Molly asked, "What are your plans with the contents?"

"I'm paying them to have Bill thoroughly check every piece for dark magic and destroy anything suspect. Probably will take him weeks. I've used a number of galleons for war expenses. Once this is all over, I'll try to find the most un-pureblood charities I can think of. I don't need the money and I don't want anyone thinking I'm fighting for profit."

I still felt a little uncomfortable sometimes at Sirius' attitude about money. I guess it was never more than a tool for him since he had it. And he probably would never run out, no matter what he did. Us on the other hand… we never were in danger of missing the necessities, but only because there was long stretches where that's all we bought.

Bill was stopping by in a few minutes after his shift was over. Charlie was keeping his eyes open in Romania and we wouldn't be seeing him until summer at the earliest. Percy was being unhelpful, worried about Crouch more than anything. His superior had been back working regular hours since the new year started, but not following his usual routine. This was odd for a man who specified the temperature of his tea to an exact degree.

This get-together was Sirius' idea. I think he missed Harry more than anything — though sometimes I wondered if it was him or James that he really missed. Harry had been too busy to make the last Hogsmeade weekend, spending most of his free time practicing spellwork. My daughter fortunately didn't hold it against him and joined him in his practice as did Hermione and Ron to a lesser extent. The kids would be arriving…

Now. The floo flashed and out came Fred and George. "Happy Easter, Father."

"Nice place you have here, Sirius."

Then Ron followed by Hermione. Then Harry fell out, ending up on the floor. Finally, my little girl nimbly hopped out. I opened my arms to her, but she stooped down to help Harry. She tousled his hair and then gave him a hand getting up. After that, she turned her attention back to me and gave me a quick squeeze. "Sorry, Dad. He's…"

"Lost without you," Harry finished.

"Definitely!" She laughed. "Happy Easter, Mum."

Molly embraced the both of them and then finished dusting Harry off. "You poor dear. Are you nervous about next month?"

"I'm fine, thank you, Mrs. Weasley."

Ginny gave him a glare that she had inherited from her mother. He amended, "Maybe a little. They are turning the Quidditch pitch into a maze with obstacles and the like. Whoever gets to the center wins. I'll be behind after the last task."

Ron said, "If you ask me, the lot of judges would be able to do a better job if they got their heads out of their arses."

"Ronald!" Hermione exclaimed.

"It's true," he said between bites of a shortbread biscuit he had somehow found.

"Anyway," Hermione continued, "unless Harry was entered into the contest by some anonymous admirer…"

"In which case her life is in danger as soon as Ginny fingers the culprit," said George.

"But otherwise… if I can avoid being interrupted… it's the last chance to spring whatever trap they have planned."

Harry said, "Everyone's been helping me practice up on stunning and some other hexes and such. The rules were changed so I can't bring anything but my wand."

"And robes," Fred said. "To the relief of some and chagrin of others," he added with a wink to his sister. "But no chance of using some of our fireworks, which is a shame. We will have to use them afters."

It was good to have a full house again, but it was definitely a quicker pace and louder environment than it was during the school year.

Sirius had ordered his house elf Kreacher to be scarce and quiet, so he took it upon himself to show everyone to their rooms. Not all of them were in a fit state for staying in still. Sirius had little love for the house of his mother and it showed. Due to the lack of rooms, the girls would be sharing, as would the twins and also Harry and Ron. They were all used doubling up at any rate.

As we walked in the stairs, I noticed a gaping hole on the wall that had been recently patched with new plaster. "I couldn't figure out a charm to remove my mother's picture. Harry, your performance at the first task reminded me of your mum. Lily would point out not everything was best solved with magic. A heavy hammer did the work brilliantly."

The children's three bedrooms were on the next floor. Sirius pointed out the assigned ones for the children, who went into their rooms to stow their baggage. Except for Ginny. "I hear something. A voice."

I had to admit nothing reached my older ears. Ginny slowly walked into the room towards an old wooden wardrobe, probably at least a hundred years old, and opened its door. I ran towards her as she found an old brown leather, nondescript pouch. She pulled at the drawstrings and flecks of leather fell off. Before she could reach inside, I rather roughly knocked it out of her hands. "Ginny!"

She seemed to snap out of a trance and then collapsed to the floor, rubbing her temples. Harry was right there and had his arms around her. Sirius closes the pouch up again and said, "I'll hold onto this until Bill can have a look. This used to be my brother's room before he got himself killed as a junior Death Eater so who knows what it is. I thought I told Kreacher to clear everything out of here… Kreacher!"

A wrinkled, graying, stooped house elf appeared. Hermione let out a sharp shriek. With all the commotion, the boys tramped into the room, Harry leading the way. "You called, Master?" Kreacher asked.

"I ordered you to clean out everything here that belonged to Regulus."

"Kreacher did as you commanded, Master Black."

He shoved the bag under Kreacher's face. "Then what's this?"

"That does not belong to Master's younger brother. It was stolen by him. It belongs to the dark lord."

I gasped. "Merlin's beard."

Sirius gingerly put the pouch in his coat pocket. "Kreacher, what is this and why is it here?"

The house elf resisted telling for a moment, looking angry and distraught. Sirius added, "Kreacher, I order you to tell me everything you know about this bag."

He surrendered to the logic he was bound by. "Kreacher does not know what manner of object this is. Very dark and very powerful. One day, young Regulus came to Kreacher and said the dark lord required the service of a house elf and was honoring the Black family by choosing Kreacher. The dark lord was hiding a locket that is now in this bag. He made Kreacher drink a potion that made Kreacher so thirsty… so thirsty it still burns. Kreacher wished to die, but Kreacher had been ordered to return to Mistress Black's house when done. Kreacher told Master Regulus and he ordered Kreacher to take him to the lagoon where the locket was hidden.

"Master Regulus himself drank the potion and ordered me to take the locket and destroy it. Master Regulus was taken by green, nasty slimy things and drowned. Kreacher tried to help him, but green slimy things tried taking the locket so Kreacher had to return home. The locket cannot be destroyed, Kreacher tried for weeks and weeks. Kreacher hid the locker and has punished himself every year on the day of young Regulus' death most severely for failing."

Sirius nodded gravely and dismissed him back to the kitchen.

Hermione was weeping openly and Ginny shivered. She finally said, "It must be like the diary… it was calling to me… to the shadow of Tom still in me." She looked at Harry and he nuzzled reassuringly.

Harry whispered, "I thought I heard something faint too, almost like a whisper in the next room. But I thought it was just me imagining things."

I sighed. "I think we will have to take this to Professor Dumbledore. He probably is the only one who may know what this is."

"Is there anything else that feels off in this room?" Sirius asked.

Ginny shook her head. "It seems safe enough to me now."

Harry insisted, "Ron and I are switching rooms with the girls."

"It's fine.

"You shouldn't be in here. Better for me and Ron."

"Harry, can we talk?" She said it with a smile but I recognized that look from my wife. Not a good one.

I said, "Once Bill gets here, I'll have him check out the room. Boys, how about you unpack."

Hermione added, "I want to check on Kreacher."

Harry looked at me for a moment. I shook my head. He was on his own.

As everyone else left, I decided to break my own rule and shut the door behind us. The young couple needed some time without interruption.

Sirius interrupted my thoughts. "Remus and Tonks are coming by tonight as well after they finish moving him in. I finally wore him down into accepting our plan..." He paused and then chuckled. "After Tonks did, of course."

"Isn't tonight a full moon?" I asked.

"Yes, they'll just be a few minutes. He has a steady supply of potion now and a special cell set up in the new house. I was party to quite the row yesterday. She insisted on being there tonight, but he wouldn't have it."

Molly asked, "Who won that? I would imagine Tonks did, she's much too stubborn, that one."

Sirius smiled, "Yes, she did. As I said, she's worn him down. He's finally realized what's good for him."

 ***Ginny***

I heard the door latch. My boyfriend had at least caught on quickly that I wasn't happy. "Gin, I was just trying to protect you."

"Harry, you were telling me, not asking me. I don't always need your help. The room's fine. And if it wasn't, why would I feel any better about you staying here instead of me? I'm allowed to want to keep you safe too."

"I'm sorry. Please don't be mad. I didn't mean it that way."

My temper was fading and I realized that this was a rather foolish thing to quarrel over. "I was feeling a little funny. Whatever's in that pouch, it's trying to steal my feelings. That's gone now. I'm sure it was just that locket. Come here?"

He took a cautious couple of steps but then rushed to me and had me tightly in his arms on the bed before I took another breath. "I'm really afraid."

"I am too," I whispered. "People we love are going to die. Mum lost her brothers. You lost… so much."

He nodded quietly. "I have what's most important right here." He gave me a quick peck on the neck and we sat in silence for several minutes. He chuckled.

"What?"

"Just thinking how everyone cleared out of here in a hurry. Your dad looked at me like I was headed off to the gallows."

"Prat." I turned towards him and stretched my body, doing my best to use a little pressure to keep his attention.

He still was a little melancholy, so I firmly told him, "We are going to make it. We will be happy and never argue because the only disagreement will be what to paint the hallways and you know you'll just give in so you won't bother."

"Yes, dear."

I continued. "No matter what we lose, I'm not losing you. I'm not wasting one second on thinking otherwise. I have no backup plan. I'm living my life with you today and tomorrow no matter the fight."

I saw hope return to his eyes and felt it in mine and I knew Harry understood. He always did. I stroked his cheek as he turned his head and then I found his lips. After a few more minutes of not talking, we heard a knock on the door and he jumped up like a shot, neatly spilling me onto the floor. Apparently, Tom was one thing, but Mum was an entirely other story.

I whispered something similar to him as he helped me up and apologized. He grinned at me, inched closer, and quietly said, "Maybe I'm more worried about not being interrupted." With that, he whipped around and headed downstairs. I needed a minute to catch my breath.

Bill, Professor Lupin, and Tonks arrived a few minutes before supper. Harry and I had been helping Mum in the kitchen with getting a shepherd's pie in the oven — he was mashing the taters while I prepared the meat. After everything was in the oven, we came out and saw the new arrivals.

"Wotcher, Harry," Tonks said. She and Lupin were holding hands. Dad had said they were dating, but it seemed a little odd at first to see two adults like that. Most adults that I knew were already married by Tonks' age if they ever got married, let alone my old professor's. His jacket had been patched several times and he looked a bit tired. Tonks had decided to go with flaming green hair for the day.

My oldest brother looked better than the last time I had seen him at Christmas, but there was still noticeable scarring that wasn't going to go away.

Bill picked me up, spun me around, and then put me down, making me laugh. "Happy Easter, Shorty. How are you doing? Do I need to hex Harry or anything for you?" He was only mostly joking.

"Not yet, for today. I'll let you know as the night progresses."

Harry smiled and said, "Nice to know my place." He handed Bill a portfolio. "Fleur said she'd rather I hand-deliver this since I was seeing you anyways." Harry had explained that she was applying for a position at Gringotts since she was in her last year.

"Sure, not a problem at all. I think with her marks she'll easily receive an offer. Being a Tri-Wizard champion doesn't hurt, even if they did disqualify her." He shook his head. The goblins wouldn't mark being not fully human against her. Probably was a benefit.

"Oh, we found something that Kreacher said belonged to Voldemort." Bill almost dropped his mug of pumpkin juice Mum had just poured him.

"That can't be good."

Sirius handed Bill the pouch. "Well, depends if it's something he wanted us to find or not. Please take a look at it when you can."

"Understood. Too many people here right now." It was eventually agreed to carry on with the festivities of holiday weekend and worry about it later.

After supper, Fred and George started getting up. Dad said, "Please hold up for a minute. We have something to discuss. We only have a few minutes before Remus will have to leave for the evening." The twins looked at each other and then sat back down.

Sirius cleared his throat and began. "First, thanks for everyone for coming for the weekend. And Molly for the splendid meal." He got up and handed us each a bracelet with three charms on it.

"Please hold onto these," he asked while sitting back down. "The third task is coming up next week and I have to agree with Hermione and assume whatever reason someone had for entering Harry is going to be made clear shortly. So, we've taken some precautions.

"As you know, this house and the Burrow both have had the fidelius charm placed on them. However, there are a number of others with access to those properties. I bought a third house in Wales that Remus is living in and acting as Secret Keeper. This information does not leave this room. We need to be prepared for the worst."

He picked up his own bracelet and showed it to us. "Squeezing any one of these charms will activate them as a portkey. The red goes to the Burrow, the green here, and the silver to Remus' place."

The former professor said, "The location of my home is Number One Oh Five, Fourth Street, Cardiff." The location formed in my head for a moment and then faded into memory as I was given the secret.

Dad spoke up. "I must emphasize that this is serious, kids. Life and death. Don't tell anyone else about this. No one. The bracelets have been charmed with Notice-Me-Not but if someone asks, say they are a gift from Sirius."

We all nodded. I knew he was just being a dad, but I didn't need another reminder that we were beginning a war or how dangerous things were going to be. We all put the bracelets on. They seemed to blend into the skin but I could barely feel the weight and mine came back into view as I concentrated. Professor Lupin and Tonk had to go shortly after that and the adults excused the rest of us as well.

Shortly before I was going to go to bed, Sirius found Harry and I and quietly asked us to come to his room. He has decided to keep sleeping where he had as a boy and not take over the master chambers.

Once we were inside, he closed and locked the door. Harry was a bit alarmed. "What's going on?"

Sirius sighed. "I hate to do this, Harry, but the fact is Peter was one of my best friends. None of us suspected him until it was too late. I won't be making the same mistake when it comes to James and Lily's boy."

He laid down three envelopes. "Don't open these yet. Each envelope contains the picture of a house and a pair of charms. The houses aren't much to look at but they are liveable and off the beaten path. I bought all of them under different aliases. I set these charms as portkeys and then had Remus wipe my memory so I don't know where they are or what they look like.

"Harry, you need to pick a house. I'm leaving the room so if I'm captured, I can't reveal anything."

He slowly breathed and sat down at the bureau. "I understand. Thank you."

Sirius paused. "Harry, no one should know about this. Not Hermione or Ron even. You can have Ginny leave and give her one of the charms to one of the other houses if you want or the match to the one you pick. I want her to be safe too, but this is a decision you will need to make."

He slowly walked out the door and when Harry didn't say anything, I started to follow. "Gin, wait." I turned around. "Stay."

He looked over the houses and picked the second one. "This one ok with you?"

I nodded. He said, "I trust you with my life. If things get so bad… if I have to use this, I will need you with me." We each put the portkeys on our bracelets. I held him tight and wished we were in another time where we could just be a happy young couple and both our families would have been whole.

Harry didn't eat anything at the dinner before the tournament's finale, no matter how much Mum fussed. My parents, Bill, Sirius, and Professor Lupin were all there to cheer him on. I had joined them as soon as I could, my last test having finished at three. At six thirty, we made our way to the Quidditch pitch where the final task would begin at seven.

Most all the students were there to watch as well as the teachers. Minister Bones was even attending, sitting in the very top row. She had tried to keep it a secret, Dad had told me. We were a couple rows underneath them as was Cedric's father Amos Diggory. Fleur joined us after thanking Bill for helping her with getting the job.

Then I realized who wasn't there. Snape, for one. He was probably still in a twist that a Slytherin hadn't been picked. I mentally kicked myself when it finally hit me… I couldn't see Dumbledore. He was a judge, should be here… maybe there was something for the Order that he and Snape had to do?

At last it was seven in the evening. Mr. Bagman gave an introduction with Mr. Crouch looking on. "Welcome staff and students of the host school Hogwarts as well as thanks once again to Durmstrang and Beauxbatons for participating in this contest. Also, I'm happy to welcome all the honored guests in attendance. The champions will enter the maze one by one according to their current point totals. If a champion gets into too much difficulty and wishes to resign and be evacuated, a red spark will soon find them help. Otherwise, the first champion to reach the Tri-Wizard cup will cause the hedges to vanish and he will win honor, glory, and riches for himself. Let the final task of the Tri-Wizard Tournament begin!"

Krum went in first as the points leader and Cedric entered a couple minutes later. Harry was five minutes after that. Of course, from the stands, all we saw were the rows and rows of hedges. Every few minutes we'd hear a yell or a scream from the distance. Ron was kind enough to not complain much as my nails used his arm as a pincushion.

I looked over at Hermione who was straining in worry. She had suggested to Harry to send out a red spark immediately. It made some sense, but he was too prideful to just quit. They had a disagreement about it for a good ten minutes yesterday when she learned it was an option. I wasn't going to argue for something he'd never do. Plus, we had no guarantee he'd be any safer doing that than trying to win.

So winning was his goal, as long as he was in it. After over half an hour, still no sparks and no winner. I looked over at the pedestal and saw Ludo looking nervous while Mr. Crouch seemed to have disappeared.

Suddenly, I heard an evil shout in the distance and saw a spell zoom into the sky. The Dark Mark exploded over the sky and hovered over the center of the pitch. The sickly green skull with the snake coming out of its mouth hung their for a second before everyone in the stands went into a frenzied panic. There was screaming everywhere. I was speechless.

My eyes strained for any sign of Harry, but all I could see was the hedges. Suddenly, I was knocked back into concentration as I was almost bowled over by someone making a run for it. Sirius grabbed Dad and shouted, "Arthur, take Fred and George and get the minister to the castle. They know a secret passage nearby. I'll keep an eye on Harry and your kids. Try to be back at my place by midnight.

He hesitated for a second, but then nodded, rounded up the twins and they started pushing their way towards Minister Bones' row.

Mum said excitedly, "Sirius, the bracelets aren't working!"

"They must have put up wards already!"

Bill said, "I'll get Mum out of here. Fleur, if they are after the champions, you may be a target as well."

"Oui, I'll follow you."

Bill then said, "Ron, Ginny, Hermione, come with me."

I crossed my arms. "Like hell I'm leaving before I find out if Harry's ok." Ron and Hermione seconded me.

"Ginny, now's not the time."

Before I could continue the argument, I felt a magical blast from the pitch that almost knocked me on my rear. The maze was gone. All the obstacles also vanished. We were all frozen in place by fear.

In its place was the clear grass field of the Quidditch pitch and three pairs of people. They started walking closer and details came into view.

On the right side and closest to me, Peter Pettigrew had his claws dug into Cedric Diggory's arm. Cedric's face was covered in welts.

A few seconds later, I recognized Viktor Krum hobbling with probably a broken leg in the left side. He was being guarded by… Mr. Crouch?

I would have spent more time wondering about that except then I saw my Harry in the middle. He looked to be in better condition than the others. Several feet behind him was a gigantic snake that surrounded a tall dark figure with a face that looked like melted wax. My heart skipped. There was only one person it could be.

Suddenly, Harry shuddered and collapsed to the ground. His captor spoke through a magically enhanced voice.

"Silence! I am Lord Voldemort and I will be shown the proper respect due me.

"I have been made anew with the help of your late Cornelius Fudge and stronger than ever before. To celebrate my return, I decided to attend this… contest to see the most promising young wizards and test their mettle."

He looked carefully at each of the champions. "I am terribly disappointed. This sad group has only strengthened my resolve to purify magical blood and bring glory back to the wizarding world, to new heights of greatness.

"This purification will not be without sacrifice. To those that serve me well, reward awaits. Those who resist will find only pain and death. For those that have betrayed me, you will beg for death as everything around you is destroyed. And I as a merciful lord, shall ultimately grant it."

He nodded at Mr. Crouch. A green flash came from Crouch's wand and Krum fell to the ground dead.

"Those who are in the ministry… you have a responsibility to true purity that has been failed. Any supporters of the Bones regime will find nothing but suffering." With that, Peter slit the throat of Cedric and dropped the boy to the ground as his life drained out.

Suddenly, I felt a chill in the air. I could see a dark mass at the far side of the field. Hundreds of dementors formed a cloud of despair.

Voldemort let out a slight sinister chuckle as I heard Mr. Diggory wailing for his son. "The dementors have wisely decided to join the cause of the pure. This has also had the convenient effect of leaving Azkaban completely unguarded. Even now, others are releasing my most loyal followers that have been held for these fourteen years. Fourteen years since a twist of fate caused my disappearance. Fourteen years that you have had your hopes pinned on a small insignificant boy.

"Harry Potter… currently under my control. And defenseless." Harry stood up turned around and knelt before him. He had to be under the Imperius. Harry, fight it!

"Crucio!"

Harry fell to the ground, shaking under the pain of the curse. He was held under it for what had to be minutes. Where was Dumbledore? I felt wetness on my cheek and I realized I was crying. "Stay back or you will all die!"

Hermione put her arms around me, trying to give me some comfort. Finally, it stopped as Voldemort drew our attention to Mr. Crouch. His skin bubbled and slowly began to change into what looked like a younger version of himself.

Sirius murmured, "Barty Crouch, junior. Death Eater, was supposed to be in Azkaban."

Voldemort explained. "One of my most loyal servants. He has been impersonating his useless father for several months. Not even the ministry is beyond the reach of Lord Voldemort!" He paused for a moment. "While there, he managed to collect the names and addresses of many ministry employees, especially of the aurors. I'm afraid that any caught resisting me will find their homes destroyed along with their occupants.

"And now, we shall return our attention to Harry Potter, one last time. See your last hope die before your eyes…"

From out of nowhere, a stunning hex soared straight at Voldemort. It was easily deflected, "Who dares… Crucio!"

I heard screaming from the ground immediately below us.

"Ron, no!" Hermione cried. My brother had snuck below for a clean shot, but all it had done was…

Distract him. Suddenly, Voldemort yelled, kneeling in pain. Harry had grabbed onto his wand arm and his mother's blood was cursing the dark lord. Suddenly, Dumbledore appeared and was dueling both Barty and Peter.

Hermione yelled out, "The wards!" Voldemort was using all his power to keep from shattering as when he had possessed Quirrell. Even he wasn't all-powerful.

My roommate leapt off the stands and onto the ground. Crawling on the ground, she reached an unconscious Ron and they disappeared.

Sirius grabbed my shoulder, "Ginny, time to go. Harry won't leave until you're safe." I was about to protest but he added, "I'll wait for him, I promise."

I sighed purposely and then reached for my bracelet. Everyone else seemed to have gone to Grimmauld Place and now didn't seem the time to reveal Harry's secret. I pressed the correct charm and hoped that I would see everyone in my family soon.

 ***Arthur***

As soon as Sirius sent us, my boys and I started to shove our way through the crowd while trying to not be terribly conspicuous. Leaving the kids behind wasn't easy, but I couldn't hesitate.

I barely saw Minister Bones behind a man that had his back turned to us.

Suddenly, twin stunners whizzed by my ear and knocked the man out. I turned to my left and Fred said, "He had his wand pointed at her."

Finally, I reached the minister. "Minister, it's me, Arthur Weasley."

"Thank Merlin. Selwyn was supposed to be my bodyguard."

I didn't know the man personally, but I recognized the family name. Bloody sacred twenty-eight. "Minister, please come with us. Once he knows you're here…"

She nodded, "Lead the way."

I turned and looked down, realizing we were a good ten yards above the ground. This didn't stop the twins. "Cushioning charm?" George asked.

Fred said, "Brilliant, old boy."

They both jumped then tucked and rolled when they landed, barely missing a step. Amelia went next and I followed.

By this point, Voldemort was well into a long rant. We were all on our feet and Fred asked, "North or south?"

"North. It's a bit further but no one should be out there."

We started on a brisk walk, hard to go faster in the dark. George explained, "There's a passage under a cliff up ahead."

A few minutes later, I heard a wail and then screaming. Someone was being tortured. I could only hope it wasn't… I stopped myself. Everyone there belonged to someone and no one deserved that.

A chime came from Fred. "Wards are down!"

I asked, "Minister, please join us at our safehouse?"

She nodded. "Thank you. I hope this is the extent of the action tonight, but I doubt it."

"Off to the Doghouse," I told my boys, using the codename. Since Sirius made the charms, her having access to the portkey was equivalent to giving her the location. I removed the protections from the bracelet and said, "Touch the bracelet on three." A moment after Fred and George disappeared, we followed.

We arrived in the parlor of the ancestral Black house. There were so many voices, I couldn't make out who was talking. It took aching seconds to do a headcount.

Ron was moaning as Hermione and Bill helped him onto a couch while Molly was beside herself. Miss Delacour was trying to calm her down.

Hermione whispered, "You-Know-Who has Harry. He had him under the cruciatus for minutes. Ron attacked him and got hit with it for a few seconds, long enough for Harry to fight back. He got the wards down and then Dumbledore arrived."

My wife stroked the forehead of our youngest son, trying to calm him. I heard the sound of another portkey. It was Ginny. She ran to me sobbing. "Dad! Harry… he's hurt him so bad. He's still there. Please, I have to back!"

Ginny started pushing away and I had to force my arms around her, locking my hands. "Ginny, he'll be…" She looked at me and dared me to lie.

Time froze for minutes. Remus arrived along with Tonks' mother Andromeda who was a member of the Order and had some skill in healing. She busied herself looking at Ron.

I kept looking at the ancient grandfather clock against the wall. It had only been a few minutes since we arrived. It seemed like all night.

Finally, the last portkey arrived. Sirius was holding Harry in his arms like an infant. He was completely unconscious and his face was covered in bruises.

My friend was shaking in anger as he placed him on a conjured bed in the sunroom. "Dumbledore finally decided to show, right before Voldemort was going to end it. They dueled for several minutes; the pitch is nearly destroyed. A number of students were hurt but I didn't see any killing curses."

Before he has finished speaking, my daughter was holding Harry's hand and her head was leaned against hers. "Why won't he wake up?"

I said, "He has had a terrible shock. His body and mind need time to heal." He didn't seem to have any grave physical injuries requiring attention and it would be risky giving him anything in his current state.

I rubbed circles on my daughter's back. "Daddy, I love him so much." She bent down and buried her face in his chest but there was not reaction from him.

I quietly sighed. "That's why it hurts so much."

She nodded and told me, "I'm going to stay here with him."

I was not about to say otherwise. "You do that. I'll have your mum bring in a cuppa in a bit."

Sirius and I walked out of the room. I left the door cracked open in case either of them called out, but she didn't need everyone staring.

Tonks had brought her mother Andromeda over and I asked her for advice. "Well, most pain potions target physical pain so they don't provide any relief. I do know of one specifically for the cruciatus curse, but it's not commonly available since it's not often needed, thank Merlin."

I feared that demand was going to skyrocket. She added, "Keep him comfortable, surrounded by his loving family and friends, and be patient. I'll stay overnight in case anyone gets worse."

No one really knew how long Frank and Alice Longbottom had been tortured. I didn't know anyone else ever having been subjected to the curse longer than Harry.

Sirius had excused himself as he and Kreacher set out to make up additional rooms for all the unexpected guests. I walked into the parlour and saw Minister Bones sending out a patronus. "It's to Kingsley Shacklebolt, letting him know I'm all right. He has his hands full, shouldn't have to worry about me."

She sat down. "I just hope I have any aurors left tomorrow. And if I do, can I trust them… Merlin, he almost won tonight. And we have no idea of how to stop him."

"Dumbledore may. He has to. He owes everyone a lot of explaining. I'll get him once it's a decent hour tomorrow and hope he has something we can call good news."

"Thank you, Arthur. I think I need a few minutes to myself."

I nodded and wandered the halls. I found Sirius in his room, wearing a hole in his rug. "Sirius…"

"I know… I'm trying to calm down. Right now, I feel like torching Malfoy Manor…"

"Harry needs you here. We'll get them later."

"Yeah, I know. I'm trying to remember what happened last time I went off without a plan. I failed him and we both suffered. It's my greatest shame. I owe you such a debt, Arthur, saving him when I couldn't. I want you and him to be proud of me. And James. He saved me."

"You tell me before you do anything foolish."

He nodded. "That won't be a worry this time. I've grown up a little since then."

It was almost one by the time everything quieted down. Finally, I decided to drag myself to bed. But first, I checked on Harry.

I did my best to open the door without it squeaking. I was not surprised to see Ginny still there. Comfort had overridden any shyness as she lay curled up next to him. Any other circumstances, I'd have had a different reaction, but I just smiled and let them be.

As I turned, I heard a sigh and saw Harry turn his chest ever so slightly towards his girl.

And right there, I knew I should always have hope.


	13. Year 5, Part 1

*Ginny*

I woke up the morning after the third task to a gentle stroke across the side of my neck. I barely opened my eyes as I processed the feeling. I was met with two emerald eyes starting back.

"Harry, you're awake!" Before he could respond, I rolled over and was pressing against him while covering him with light kisses. I was almost embarrassed to feel a few tears escape my eyes.

All I got in response was an "Oof!"

"Sorry. Little sore?"

"Yes. But worth every bit of it to wake up with you next to me."

I sat up and tossed my pillow at him. "Still cheeky. I could get used to this… but we better get up before someone barges in."

I stood up. Harry tried following, but he stumbled for a minute. I gave him a hand to help steady himself for a moment. "Ok, Gin, dear, I'm ok. I need to get washed up. I'll be in the kitchen in a few."

Sirius met him before he had a chance to try the stairs independently and the old dog made sure his godson wouldn't trip.

I ran into the kitchen where Mum was finishing cooking. I gave her a big hug and smiled. "He's up and he's ok."

"That's wonderful. Your father saw him move just a little late last night, so we had hope. Now how about you get dressed. Dobby brought everyone's trunks in a few hours ago. The Leaving Feast was cancelled and everyone was sent home as quickly as possible. The Hogwarts Express was scheduled to leave just about now."

"Yes, ma'am." I went to the girls' room and put on a green sundress and black leggings. It wasn't quite full-blown summer weather yet. My hair was a ghastly mess and by the time it was under control and I was back downstairs, the headmaster was there standing in the parlor. I guessed breakfast would have to wait.

Harry and Sirius were behind me just a few seconds later, my love's black hair still glistening with dampness. Dumbledore said, "I believe the time has come for a discussion."

Dad said, "I would think so."

Sirius added, "I have a place set up in the first floor, if everyone would follow me." He showed Dumbledore the way and motioned for everyone else to follow.

Harry and I went first, then Ron and Hermione. Dad and Mum and Bill were there as well as Remus, Lupin, Tonks, and another auror named Kingsley Shacklebolt. A very unique group. Minister Bones left early to calm fears she had been killed. Fred and George had insisted on checking on the Burrow and Fleur was back in France. She would be gone at least a couple nights visiting her family and packing before starting her job at Gringotts.

Sirius rounded a corner and we entered a brightly lit room with a large round table in the middle. The walls were adorned with maps of Britain, London, Hogsmeade, and a few other locations. As we all sat down he said, "Welcome to the War Room."

Before he could say anything else, Dumbledore said, "I do appreciate everyone's support, but I'm afraid that the information I have is too delicate for such a large group. If it gets into the wrong hands…"

"Albus," Sirius said, "everyone here has already risked their lives or been marked for death by Voldemort."

"Even so, if you insist on telling, I think everyone taking an unbreakable vow will be necessary, to not share what we discuss and to not give up the information if captured no matter the consequences or method."

Mum said, "We have four children here. They can't do that."

Dumbledore corrected her. "Actually, Molly, they can. Only one participant in a vow and the vow-binder must be strong enough for the magic to hold. And the age of seventeen is much more subjective than most believe except where it pertains to the Trace."

Dad said, "Harry needs to know and he is going to need his friends. Everyone will assume Hermione and my two will know everything anyway, so not telling them isn't sparing anyone from danger. Let them take it so we can begin."

Dumbledore went around the table and after a few minutes finished up with me. Luck number thirteen. "I, Ginevra Molly Weasley, hereby swear on my life and magic to not divulge the conversation we have in this room today."

Finally, Dumbledore began. "This story starts some fifteen years ago. Sybil Trelawney, while interviewing for a position at Hogwarts, gave her first real prophecy." He produced a globe and activated it. I saw the professor speaking in a voice similar to the one she used when sharing the second prophecy.

"Two children could have fulfilled the conditions of this telling. One was the boy about to be born to James and Lily Potter and the other would have been the son of Frank and Alice Longbottom." Neville… "Voldemort only heard half the prophecy, but went on with attacking the Potters. He decided to mark the half-blood as his greatest threat, all the while espousing a doctrine of blood purity. The meaning of the prophecy is quite clear. Harry is the one with the power to end him permanently."

I squeezed his hand, which was getting rather moist. Harry protested, "But I don't… I can't. I'll never be as powerful as him!"

"In some ways, my boy, you are already. The love that you have been given and freely give is a power that has saved you and others more than once already."

"Big deal! Sorry, I don't mean to say anything about how all of you feel about me, especially you, Gin, but I can't believe thinking happy thoughts is going to send magical rainbows that wipe him from the Earth."

Dad said, "Harry, it's not like that. We will all help you. But once you are strong enough, love will be the only way that you do not become a new dark lord. It will save you in the end. Prophecies are often doubled or tripled, folding in in themselves."

He slowly nodded and tried calming down with some breathing exercises Sirius had a taught him. Dumbledore continued. "There's more. Miss Weasley heard a second prophecy a year ago." He then played my memory of the event.

"I puzzled over the meaning of these anchors until I realized I had already seen one. Or what was left of one. I am confident my former student Tom Riddle split his soul with murder and used the resulting damage to store bits of his soul in items he found meaningful or valuable. He turned them into very dark, little known objects called horcruxes."

Everyone sat in silence, barely able to think about all the implications.

Tonks asked, "You already found one of these?"

"I didn't. Ginny did, almost three years ago."

"The diary," I whispered. Merlin, that meant…

"Yes Miss Weasley, you were possessed by the first horcrux, containing a portion of Voldemort's soul. It is amazing that you were so resilient, especially as a first year, to fight it so long."

I should have been devastated by the news, but part of me had known it all the time. Dumbledore said, "Horcruxes are difficult to destroy. Harry was very fortunate to have that basilisk fang."

Hermione said, "So Ginny's prophecy means there are seven horcruxes total, including one accidentally made and one made recently."

"Yes, I believe so Miss Granger."

Sirius said, "I think we have two more. Ginny found a locket belonging to old Tom and Bill found something while searching through the vault previously belonging to my cousin. Something very dark that he couldn't destroy."

My oldest brother carefully placed the locket I had found at Easter on the table. Next to it he placed an ornate cup with the stylized 'H' of Helga Hufflepuff. I could hear whispers from both the locket and the cup. "They are both calling to me."

Mum and Ron both looked terrified. Dumbledore was momentarily speechless. Then he said, "We already know that Miss Weasley has retained some memories from her experience. She must possess an imprint that the other horcruxes recognize. However, it does not seem to have any other effect on her."

Remiss said, "So that's three. We destroy all seven anchors and he's mortal?"

"Yes, I believe so. We don't know what they are. I have glimmers of suspicions that I need to investigate."

Bill said, "I can help. We need to destroy all of them quickly so Harry has a fighting chance."

Dumbledore kept glancing at Harry and then bouncing his eyes back. "Indeed. I also may have a way to more safely destroy these ones and the other three."

I can do maths in my head. "Four," I said.

"Yes, of course."

I paused and saw something in his eyes. Everything came together in one thunderclap. The occasional mood swings. The nightmares. The scar. "You know what the accidental horcrux is."

He nodded.

I could barely bring myself to say the words. "...who it is," I barely whispered and unsuccessfully fought tears.

Dumbledore sighed and then quietly said, "Harry, I didn't want to burden you… I'm afraid that the night Voldemort killed your parents and tried to kill you, he left part of himself behind. It's why you see what he sees in dreams and why you can speak to snakes. Not a proper horcrux, so the strongest magic can affect it — the three-stranded cord. The only triple set of spells from the prophecy that make sense are the Unforgivables. You experienced two of them last night. If you were hit by the killing curse from Voldemort, it would complete both of the prophecies and he would become mortal."

"But what about Harry, poor dear?" Mum asked.

I looked at the burned-out diary with a hole in the middle caused by the basilisk fang. Harry saw it too and must have thought the same thing as me. Dad stood up but before he could reach him, Harry dropped my hand and ran out of the room.

*Arthur*

"I'll go after him," I volunteered. Ginny was about to protest, but I said, "He'll need you too, but let me talk to him first."

I rushed upstairs to the boys' room only to find it empty. I checked every loo in the house and then the room he had slept in last night. I finally thought of one last place and sighed at the thought of what he was feeling. I found him huddled on the floor in the smallest cupboard in the house.

I sat in the hallway next to him and waited a few minutes for him to get the courage to speak.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I just couldn't stay… Ginny deserves better. I'll do it, make sure she has a chance at a proper life. I shouldn't be afraid. I've always been marked. I should have known it. You shouldn't have wasted your time on me."

I put my arm around him and quieted him, just sitting until he had calmed enough to listen. "Harry, you listen to me. Even if you don't make it, none of us will consider caring for you a waste. Love never is. I love you as much as if you were my son. No matter what happens, no matter what you do, that won't change.

"And this will be difficult but not impossible. Dumbledore has been known to be wrong. I can't believe the powers that sent the prophecy would condemn you without any hope. We will find a way. We. You are not alone. I think you have your hands full already. OWLs and keeping my daughter happy should be all you have to worry about."

That eventually got a slight smile out of him. "And you seem to be doing well with both of that. Just don't neglect one for the other."

He grinned and I was immensely glad to not know what was going on in his head at that moment. At least it got him out of his pity. "No, sir… I mean, yes sir."

He dried the tears from his face and I stood up. I reached out a hand and helped him up, then drew him in for a hug. Ginny, Ron, and Hermione appeared soon and joined us. "You ok, mate?" Ron asked.

"Yeah, just a lot to take in. At least I know what I have to do."

Ron said, "What we have to do. We're not going anywhere."

"How about you try to have some fun. It's the first day of summer holiday, after all. We're heading for the Burrow tomorrow. All of you. Sirius will be coming too, help keep an eye on things. I imagine the Ministry is going to be a right mess."

"Sure, Dad," Ginny said.

Hermione added, "Sirius said he had a huge library I wanted to examine!"

Ron groaned.

Harry said, "It has a chessboard if you want to have a go."

"All right."

"Ginny gets to help me though."

"Needing help from a girl? Oww!" he exclaimed as Ginny kicked him in the shins.

She added, "You're just lucky I don't use my wand." Harry and I both chuckled.

"Blimey, Harry. Worst part about you dating Ginny is that I'm outnumbered three to one."

I smiled and head back to the War Room. My wife asked, "How is Harry?"

"I think he'll be ok for now." I looked at Dumbledore, trying not to throttle him.

He got up and said, "I think I should get back to my school if we are finished.

Sirius said, "One thing more… why were you so long in showing up yesterday? Harry was left facing Voldemort on his own."

He sighed and rubbed his spectacles. "Severus had been assigned the task to keep me occupied, by poisoning if necessary. If I had shown up by immediately, his cover would have been blown. I knew Voldemort wanted to inspire fear. He was going to take his time before getting to Harry."

I interrupted. "And Viktor and Cedric?"

"They would have been killed just the same."

He was probably right, but it didn't sit well with me. "Anything else we need to know?"

"It will be in the Prophet tomorrow… Azkaban was broken into as he threatened. No Dementors in sight. I don't believe getting passed them would have been so easy, even for a few Death Eaters. I believe all the Dementors abandoned their relationship with the Ministry in favor of serving Voldemort. They would undoubtedly also have more opportunities to perform the kiss."

"And Bellatrix?" Sirius asked.

"Yes, her and her husband and his brother are among those missing. I am sure we will see their work on the front pages soon. They must not find out about the cup."

"You know how to destroy them?" I asked.

"I have a few ideas. I will see what happens and keep you informed."

A week later at work, I was eating lunch in my office. The atmosphere was very dark. And sparse. Crouch was dead of course, but Ludo was sacked as well when my earlier accusations of his gambling proved to be too true. A third of the aurors resigned once they heard Voldemort's threat, and another handful… well, I tried to not judge too rashly, but based on their families and backgrounds, I wasn't all too sure what side they were on.

Percy dropped by with a sullen face. "I'd rather you hear it from me. I've been moved to handling the post." That was a significant demotion from, well anywhere. "I guess I'm lucky to still have a job. They're right chuffed about Crouch and I'm a handy target. They also are investigating me, if I helped him get the personnel files, which I didn't."

"I'm glad for that. Keep your head down for a few months and I'll let you know if there's any openings." If there was even a ministry by then.

"Thanks," he mumbled. "Time to get busy, I guess. And here's a letter for you from Dumbledore. The rest of the crew said he only uses his phoenix for express items, so I volunteered to hand-carry it."

I opened it up carefully after Percy left. It read simply, "One done. Number two after school starts."

A few days later, the Order was meeting at Grimmauld Place in the evening. It was the first meeting since the Third Task.

Dumbledore gave a brief summary of the latest events to catch up those that weren't present for the Third Task, like Moody and a few others. He had decided to not divulge the exact contents of the prophecies or his interpretation.

"I will say the old adage that knowledge is power is still definitely in effect. Severus reports that Voldemort is trying to break through the security in the Department of Mysteries and learn the contents," he said to finish.

Moody said, "Only the subject of a prophecy is able to take the orb. So unless Harry or Voldy present themselves, it's not going anywhere."

"Even so, I think committing resources to guard the area is important. He may find a way eventually and watching for incursions into the Ministry is also valuable."

"What about my suggestion?" Sirius asked forcefully. He was straining to contain himself.

Dumbledore responded, "Attacking known or suspected Death Eater locations may only cause them to move to places we don't know of. We also must be careful we don't encourage reprisals or cause the public to turn on us. We need to be the light."

"Meanwhile Malfoy just takes his seat on the Wizengamot and opposes anything we do!"

"For now, unfortunately yes. We must remain patient." He paused briefly and then said, "Everyone, please let me know when you are able to take a shift."

Exasperated, Sirius excused himself. I signed up for Tuesday evenings. It would be easy enough to explain my working late regularly. My office had just been expanded to also regulate counterfeit and phony magical items. It sometimes seemed half the shops in Diagon Alley were involved. Meanwhile, many of the rest had closed their doors. The backlog kept getting higher and higher.

Sirius was on the roof, staring into the distance. "Don't worry," he said, "I made sure the charm applied here too. After Azkaban… seeing the sky is something I couldn't give up." He turned and looked at me. "I'd quit the Order if they weren't using my house as their bloody headquarters. All this defence… all we're doing is trying to die slower."

I sighed. "I think he is playing the long game. We need to find the other anchors and get the one out of Harry's head. And keep him alive until he's ready to face him."

"I know. Doesn't mean we shouldn't try to frustrate their plans. Dumbledore wasn't keen on my grabbing the vault but look what we found. He can try to be the light all he wants. I think we go after anyone who is enabling Voldemort."

"All right. Sounds good. If we can make them hesitate at all with their plans, it may save a few lives." I waited a moment and said, "Are you going to be staying at the Burrow still?"

He shook his head. "No, I'll stay here. I've been meaning to get into the library and see if there's anything of use. I'm not sure what Reg knew, but there may be a clue. I'll stop by every few days and check on Harry."

*Ginny*

Luna screeched as she barely stopped my Firebolt before it ploughed her into the side of a hill near my parents' house. "I can tell why you like flying so much," she said. "It's fortunate that the manufacturer was able to add a nargle-repelling charm."

"Well, they don't advertise it, but as you said, there doesn't seem to be any around my broom, so it must be working."

Hermione thankfully held her tongue. She did say, however, "I'd like to keep my feet on the ground, thank you much. I'll have enough to worry about with OWLs this year."

I scrunched my nose. "We only have a few days left of summer hols, let's not talk about school."

Luna mischievously grinned. "We could talk about boys. That's what most of my dorm mates were talking about at end of year. Especially Harry."

I shook my head. "The price I pay as his girlfriend." I was only half-joking.

Luna said, "I thought the price was all those welts on your neck."

I gasped, "Merlin, did the glamour wear off already?"

She nodded very matter-of-factly and then laughed in her otherworldly manner. Hermione couldn't help but smile. "I was debating about saying something."

"It was my birthday yesterday and I felt like… well, nevermind." I waved my wand and reapplied the charm. "Harry gave me a wonderful pair of diamond earrings that were his mum's and then before bed, he said he'd understand if we wanted to break things off after what's been happening."

The nightmares we're occurring at least weekly, not that he needed more reminders of what was in the future.

Hermione gasped. "That idiot."

"Yeah, I figured it was coming sometime but he did fight it for most of the summer at least. Anyway, I laid into him pretty hard, so he needed some reassurance."

Hermione was blushing. "Is that what they call it these days? You were awful late coming to bed."

"Oh, shut it. Nothing much happened. How about you, Luna? Anyone catch your interest?"

"Not really. Most boys are pretty stupid at this age."

Hermione wholeheartedly agreed.

"You know, you could push things along if you want."

Hermione bit her lip. "I'm not sure now's a good time. If things get worse… I'm not going to be allowed at Hogwarts if things get bad. I need to concentrate on schoolwork while I can."

She did have a point unfortunately. Muggleborns were already being threatened. A lot of prejudice was seeping through with each auror that retired or died.

I was jolted out of that thought when Luna said, "Does Harry's glamours last longer than yours?"

"Less, actually, I'm better at charms." Then I groaned. "He's been out fishing with Ron all afternoon."

Hermione actually laughed. "I'm sure Ron will say something…"

"I have no doubt," I said, smirking.

Suddenly, I heard a yell, "Ginny!"

Hermione said, "Speak of the devil."

Luna looked puzzled. "Why would we do that? Seems risky."

"Oh, it's a muggle phrase… nevermind."

The three of us hurried back to the house. Mum and the twins were in the living room, and I was surprised to see Fleur standing there. "Is everything ok?"

"Oui, except for an 'orrible bigot of a landlord." She sat down, exasperated. "He also is a beet of an idiot. Took him this long to realize who I was. But once he did, he told me he only rents flats to humans. All my things were lying outside my door, locks changed. He zaid he'd make an exception if I… well, I hexed heem good and shrunk everything into my bag and left. Beel was still at ze bank, and he said to come here. He showed me a note from Arthur so I could get in."

Harry and Ron crashed in as she finished. Harry fortunately had reapplied the charms to his neck. Hermione summed up the situation so Fleur didn't have to repeat herself. Mum shook her head and out with her hands on her hips. "I'm sorry, dear, but I'm afraid you may find the same treatment elsewhere too. Hagrid, the Magical Creatures professor at Hogwarts, just got a nasty article written about him being half-giant. He was so embarrassed, he tried to resign but Dumbledore wouldn't have it."

"Mum," I asked, "We have my old room free. Could Fleur stay with us, at least until this blows over?"

Fleur looked startled, "I couldn't impose like that, Geeny."

Mum intervened. "Nonsense! It's no problem at all. I couldn't have a young lady wandering around London homeless by herself. Especially not now." She turned to face me and said, "Ginny, dear, please show Fleur to her room."

Fleur surrendered with a smile. As I started walking upstairs, Mum added, "And Ginny, if you or Harry get any more doxy bites, we'll have to move your room. I'm sure the one next to my bedroom will be safe."

I gulped. "Yes, ma'am. I'm sure we won't have any more attacks." At least until we were back in school.

We walked up the stairs and I opened the door to my first bedroom and then led Fleur inside. "You can stay here."

"Zank you…"

"Stop right there!" Hermione yelled from the doorway. She and Luna had her wand pointed at Fleur. "Sorry, but need to be sure. Ginny, ask her something no one else would know."

I racked my brain for a minute, trying to remember anything we had said in private. The only one I could remember really wasn't one of my proudest moments to relive, but it was just the four of us here. "Week after Christmas, I was being short with you."

Fleur nodded. "You finally told me 'arry had said something insensitive, regarding you and me and a few other girls."

"Go on."

"I told you boys, even 'arry are idiots sometimes and the only reason he wasn't even more affected by me was that he was totally committed to you."

I smiled and nodded to Hermione, who put down her wand. "Again, sorry."

Fleur said, "Don't be, you need to be careful. Though polyjuice doesn't work on part-humans."

Hermione said, "I had heard that, but wasn't sure if it applied to you."

"Eet does. 'aving ze Veela charm shows it does."

"Well, that's enough excitement for now," I said. "We'll let you unpack. Supper should be a bit longer still."

She nodded and we let her be. Luna said, "As interesting as this has been, I should be getting back. It's my day to cook supper. See you at Diagon Alley tomorrow?"

"Hope so. Besides Hermione, we haven't gotten our school lists yet. Probably issues with the owls not being able to get to our house." Hermione was rather pleased with herself when a prefect's badge had been included.

Luna gave us both hugs and said, "Don't worry. You both worry too much. Too many nargles."

I smiled and we escorted her to the floo.

Half an hour later, Dad and Bill both came home from work. Bill ate with us a couple times a week or so. He immediately asked, "Did Fleur end up showing?"

"Yes, dear," Mum said. "I insisted she stay with us and put her in Ginny's old room. She's there now."

"Thanks. I'll go check on her."

Dad produced five letters in his hands. "There was quite a stir this afternoon when a phoenix showed up in my office." He called down the twins, who didn't seem too enthusiastic about the deliveries.

Fred and George were given theirs first. They only were taking a couple classes each after how few OWLs they received. Part of me wondered why they bothered to go, but them dropping out would break Mum's heart.

Harry, Ron, and I had all been taking the same set of classes. I ripped open my envelope and scanned through the book list. "Last year of Divination?"

Harry said, "Definitely. I probably won't pass, even if I wanted to continue."

Ron wasn't talking. I looked over and he was holding a shiny badge with the Gryffindor crest and a large "P."

Hermione almost jumped up. "That's great, Ron! I got one as well."

Harry added, "Congratulations!"

Mum said, "I'm so proud of both of you."

Ron was beaming. "Thanks." He paused for a moment and looked at Harry. "Um, I'm surprised that you didn't get this."

"Don't worry about it, mate. I have enough going on. Plus, you two get to try to keep Fred and George toeing the line."

The twins both laughed. Then they stopped when they saw Hermione wasn't. "You aren't really going to take points off us, are you, old bean?" Fred said.

Hermione said, "Not as long as we don't see anything that deserves it. Right, Ron?"

My youngest brother mumbled something incoherent. She glared at him.

George said, "Well, we will make sure you don't SEE anything." Harry looked rather amused by the whole situation. I kept quiet as I planned on my own set of shenanigans with the Boy Who Lived. If Ron caught us snogging, he'd be too red to report us.

Mum put a stop to the conversation. "Boys, Ron's being a prefect isn't a license for you to run rampant and cause mischief. If you are so worried about being bored, maybe you should have worked harder on your OWLs and taken a few classes. Merlin only knows what you plan on doing next year," she sighed. Then as an afterthought, she asked, "Ginny, can you tell Fleur it's time for dinner?"

"Yes, Mum."

I walked up the stairs and saw the door closed. I rapped softly and then opened it. "Fleur, it's time for…"

I stopped talking. Bill was sitting on her bed, Fleur was in his arms and they were snogging! At least as hard as Harry and I had last night, if not more. I tried leaving unnoticed but Bill saw me and jumped up, almost spilling Fleur on the floor.

I couldn't help but laugh. "Ginny, I…" Bill sputtered.

"Got your hands full?" I leaned against the back wall. "Shepherd's pie is ready, unless you'd rather have something… French," I said with a smirk.

With that, I whipped around and walked out the door, making sure to leave it open. "They'll be down in a bit," I announced.

When I rejoined the group downstairs, Harry put his arms around me and asked, "What has you smirking?"

I gave him a quick peck and whispered, "I'll tell you later, luv."

I did find a few minutes alone with him to talk. He wasn't surprised. Apparently Fleur had asked him about Bill a few times and Harry was not so clueless to not guess that she liked him. I didn't tell anyone else, but we didn't keep secrets from each other.

We said goodnight our usual way and then I went to bed, where Hermione was reading a book on ancient Greek culture. It was muggle, but she insisted some of the myths showed that there were elements of the magical world involved.

I put on a tee I had swiped from Harry and then lay next to Hermione. "Anything good in there?"

"A bit. I'm ready for school to start again." She paused for a moment. "Ginny?"

"Yes…?"

"We'll find the last couple anchors. I can tell you've been a little frustrated. And try not to think about the prophecies too much. Far often than not, it makes things worse."

"Thanks. I'll try to remember that." I closed my eyes and slowly went to sleep.


	14. Year 5, Part 2

***Ginny***

Malfoy dropped by our train car earlier than usual. I had decided to try something new and found out that sitting in Harry's lap was now my new happy place. It was obviously his happy place too, while we chatted about the little things that might happen this next year. There would be time later to worry about the big things.

Ron seemed to finally get over our little public displays of affection during the summer. But only after we had a private conversation. With six older brothers, I was lucky that the over-protectiveness wasn't worse than it was. Especially with our unique situation, I thought I had been fairly patient.

At this point, the issue really was Ron realizing he was the only one that hadn't ever had any sort of romance. The twins and Charlie had both had casual dates at least even if nothing lasted for more than a few weeks. Ron was jealous in several different ways, but didn't want to admit it. Meanwhile, Hermione was reading her prefect guidebook, though I was surprised she didn't have it memorized yet.

So, it was a fairly good ride so far. Or it was until the blonde-haired prat walked in.

"Potter. Hope you are enjoying your train ride with the Weaselette. Probably your last so make sure you don't knock her up. Hate to see any more half-blood orphans running around."

It was deathly quiet in the coach as his words hung in the air. I would have been shocked at the slander if I had been previously blessed with a quieter life. However, I was completely done with him and Harry didn't need to be distracted by the little piece of chicken shite. I stood up and purposefully walked over to the door. "What's died up your arse, Malfoy? Even with all the money your father has, you can't buy a decent attitude?"

Harry said, "It's probably that he's used to his Dad being in charge. Pushy houseguest getting under your skin?"

Draco glared. "I'd shut it if I were you. I, unlike you, am a prefect."

"That's fine. I, unlike you, am not a ponce and a servant to a half-blood without a nose in my own home."

"Keep talking. You'll pay for every disrespectful word. And I already have everything I could ever want and will get more than you filth could ever dream."

Ron spoke up, "Then why are you wasting your time with blood traitors and muggleborns? You can leave, now." When he didn't budge, he added, "And Hermione and I are also prefects, and will give as good as we get, so make sure you keep your trolls in line."

He scowled and left our coach. I said, "Thanks, Ron."

"Of course. No one gets to talk to you or Harry like that. We're family." That earned him a hug.

Hermione said, "We should go to our meeting now, Ronald. Please try to not get into a fight while we are there."

He got up, mumbling about the injustice of Draco being a prefect. I tried to calm down and enjoy the rest of the trip in my happy place. I dozed off until I woke up to the smell of chocolate. Ron and Hermione were taking a break from their rounds and my brother was on his third chocolate frog by the count of the cards he was looking at — another Dumbledore, one Flamel, and one of Charlie's heroes, Newt Scamander.

"Hey, any for me?" I asked as I sat up in my seat.

Harry chuckled as he handed me a box from Belgium. "You said you liked the darker stuff better, so I hid this before he could nick it."

I took a piece and let the silky goodness melt in the back of my throat. "Thanks, love." I unwrapped the box a bit more and then said, "Hermione?"

She glared at Ron and then said, "Sure, thanks."

"What?" he asked. "I offered you half a frog."

"We should get dressed, Ginny."

"Yeah, ok." We had re-promised Mum and Dad that we wouldn't be anywhere by ourselves after how the last term had ended.

Harry smirked as I got up. "I always liked you in your robes."

I gently swatted him on the top of his head while Ron pretended to dry heave and then the two boys started smacking each other in jest and wrestling. Sometimes they were still definitely boys at heart.

Nothing terribly interesting happened during the rest of the trip or during the sorting. There was surprisingly little changes to the staff. Snape was still teaching Defense and Slughorn was coming back for one last year, so the hex seemed to be broken. Hagrid however was temporarily on leave and would be back later so an older witch, Professor Grubbly-Plank would be filling in.

Then came the bad news. After introducing the new temporary professor, Dumbledore said, "And now I must regret to inform all of you that both Hogsmeade weekends and Quidditch are indefinitely suspended."

Ron threw his roll down in anger. "There goes my chance at being Keeper. And no Hogsmeade weekends? Bloody hell." A stare from Hermione quieted him, but across the rest of the room, everyone else was having the same sort of reaction.

It took a minute of Dumbledore's icy cold stare to calm the uproar. "We all realize how much these activities mean to you and trust me, they mean almost as much to me and the rest of the faculty and staff. However, the end of last term unfortunately showed that those areas are far too unprotected. The wards protecting the castle itself are as strong as ever, but the protection does not extend in strength to the pitch or the village. Your safety and well-being is the highest importance."

Hermione looked frustrated too, but that was probably because her job as prefect just got much harder. Dumbledore excused us all and she got up, saying gently, "First years, this way please. We will show you to Gryffindor tower."

When that didn't get much of a reaction, Ron blurted out, "Oi, midgets! This-away!"

Harry laughed out loud as Hermione corrected him. "Ronald, you can't call them that!"

The kids looked our way and started staring once they saw realized who it was. I grinned at his discomfort. "Yes, this is Harry Potter. But he's mine," I said with a wink at some of the girls who had stars in their eyes. Not that I could blame them. I gave him a quick peck on the cheek and the young boys looked away in disgust. I grinned and held Harry's hand tightly all the way to the stairway to the girls' wing.

Hermione wasn't in bed for several more minutes and definitely looking stressed. "Everything all right?" I asked.

"Yes, of course. Just revising with my books from last year. Much of the OWLs are based on theories and techniques introduced last year."

The tests were important, but seriously… "Don't you think you're overdoing things?"

"Ginny, I can't afford to not be tops. Even if the war is over by then, I already have three strikes against me in any job. I'm a witch, I'm not that pretty, and I'm a muggleborn. I need all O's for anyone to even consider me for any real career."

I sighed and a little upset at the world and that I couldn't really argue with her view of the world. My mum had never considered applying for a position at the Ministry and Tonks' special talents and pedigree has given her a leg up. I knew Lavender spent more time looking at the boys than in her books.

Hogwarts was an exception, probably one of the good things Dumbledore did and there were witches in many jobs, but the expected life for most pure-blood witches was at home making, raising, and teaching children until they were eleven and got their letters.

I didn't think Harry felt that way, but I hadn't really talked to him about that sort of thing yet. I filed that away for another time. After I had a lot more courage to even think that far in the future.

I waited for Harry in the Common room before heading down for breakfast. Ron and Hermione had already left, wanting to make sure the first years didn't get lost. He was several minutes late. "Sorry, Gin. Didn't sleep well."

That was obvious from his appearance. "Nightmares?" I didn't bother with general questions, like asking him if he was ok, because he'd say yes and that'd be the end of it.

"Yeah, more dreams from Tom. He's not happy that they weren't able to nab me during the summer and so it wasn't a pleasant night for anyone else near him. I'll… we'll talk later, dear." He said as Parvati entered the room. We switched to small talk and then didn't have a lot of time to ourselves during Charms or Transfiguration class.

At lunch, a Ravenclaw prefect handed Harry a note. He looked at it and then folded it in his pocket. "Dumbledore wants to see us during our free period."

"Uh, ok." I hadn't been there since the end of my second year. Harry had not experienced that luxury.

After we finished our sandwiches, we walked up to the Headmaster quarters. Harry stood in front of the gargoyle in front and said, "Lemon drops." A door leading to a staircase opened.

We slowly walked inside and Dumbledore invited us to sit down. I looked around as I sat in a chair probably older than the Burrow. All around I saw different portraits of the past headmasters. Dumbledore had an entire shelf dedicated to an odd assortment of devices, whirring and generally acting almost alive. I could almost feel the power in this place and was glad that the headmaster was on our side.

"Good afternoon Mr. Potter, Miss Weasley. I trust the new school year has been treating you well so far?"

"Yes, sir," we both said.

"Good. Now, I have something to show you and something I'll need your help on." He reached into a drawer and set the shattered pieces of a cup on his desk. "I believe I was successful in destroying this horcrux, but I wanted to make doubly certain that it no longer is causing you a reaction, Miss Weasley."

I stared at it for a few seconds, trying to think about how it felt last time I was in its presence. "No, nothing from that, Professor. I think the locket is nearby?"

He smiled and nodded. "Good, and yes, it is."

Harry asked "How did you destroy the cup?"

Dumbledore stood up and reached towards a shelf behind him. "This actually also is thanks to you, Harry." He opened a case and brought out a magnificent sword. "Do you remember this, Miss Weasley?"

I shook my head. "No. Should I?"

Harry took my hand and said softly, "It's what I used to kill the basilisk."

I nodded, shaking as I slowly touched the jewel-encrusted hilt. "I was out of it during your fight… I guess you would have had it when Fawkes lifted us out of the Chamber, but everything is really hazy." And I tried very hard to not think about that night.

Dumbledore said, "The sword of Godric Gryffindor is goblin-made and enchanted to take on anything that makes it strong and reject what does not. It now has the power of basilisk venom, which only has one antidote — phoenix tears. It's ideal for this job."

"That's great, Professor, but you said you needed us for something?" Harry asked, showing some impatience.

"Yes, please forgive an old man his meanderings. I used the sword to destroy the cup, but the locket seems to have some sort of enchantment that allows it to protect itself. It is a relic of Slytherin, so I believe you are uniquely qualified to open it."

"Parseltongue…" Harry whispered.

Dumbledore placed it on the table. "Precisely. We must be prepared for the locket to fight back, so have your wands drawn and be prepared…. Now, whenever you're ready."

My boyfriend hissed something and the locket popped open.

My head exploded in pain.

I saw Tom, a few years older than I had known him, appear out of the locket. He towered over me and everything else in the room went dark. I heard a voice with just enough sweetness that it combated the general creepiness of his mannerisms. "My little Ginny. It's been a few years…"

I clenched my fists until my short nails dug into the palms of my hands. "You… you can't hurt me anymore, Tom."

"You don't seem very sure of that, do you? Another few seconds last time and both of you would have been gone. Your luck will run out like sand in an hourglass. He really doesn't trust you; you know that. Why should he? You nearly killed his best friend, a girl much better suited to him than you ever will be."

I tried breathing. "Everything you say is a lie! Harry not only forgave me for the chamber, he loves me!"

He paused for a moment but then grinned. "Yes, his greatest weakness. Love. He'll risk everything for your sake. Even his purpose. You know he needs to die, but he won't. The only way for me to be defeated is letting you go, which he will never do. I've already won." I saw Harry die a dozen different ways in my mind's eye.

I tried to force myself to refuse to believe what the shade was telling me, but there were quivering doubts inside me. Harry and Dumbledore were both shaking, probably going through their own personal version of hell at the moment as well. I strengthened my will and grabbed the sword's hilt while feeling Harry's hand on mine. "Together?" he asked.

"Together."

We lifted the sword up, which felt light but was still very heavy to move at the moment. Then we brought its edge firmly down on the locket. The image of Tom disappeared with a scream and black smoke appeared over the desk momentarily before disappearing.

I fell back in my chair, exhausted from the strain.

Harry looked at me, scared. I knew I had the same look in my face. "Did that thing talk to you too?"

He nodded. "I love you, Harry." He tried to smile as I reassured him. "That matters more than whatever rubbish it said."

"I love you too, Gin."

Dumbledore looked at us with tired but satisfied eyes. I thought I saw the remnants of some tears but tried not to stare at the headmaster. Harry asked, "It talked about the prophecies, but Voldemort doesn't know about them, does he?"

"An interesting question, Harry. I am fairly certain what we experienced was the echo of his soul acting on our memories and most powerful fears. What he said to me was something that happened before he was born, that if he knew, he would have made use of."

He paused for a moment before continuing. "The fragments of his soul are wholly split. Only regret and remorse could bring them back together. Their hold in this realm is weak, strengthened only through his hate, anger, and fear of what lies beyond. Love is infinitely more powerful."

Harry looked puzzled. It was his thinking look. I softly ran a finger through a few strands of his hair.

We sat there in silence for a few minutes until the ancient clock on the wall let out a chime. "I'm afraid that will have to close our time for now. I have an appointment with Professor Flitwick."

"Cripes, we're late for Defense," I said.

"I can excuse you two," Dumbledore offered. "You've had a tiring afternoon already."

Harry shook his head as we both got up. "No, thank you. That'll just make Snape more mad."

As we hurried away, I heard the headmaster say, "Professor Snape, Harry…"

"Yes, sir," Harry said and we quickly left, almost stumbling down the staircase that led out of his office.

We hurried and walked in the classroom door five minutes after class started. We quietly found some seats in the back as he stared daggers at us. "Mr. Potter, it's bad enough that you think surviving for five minutes in the Dark Lord's presence apparently means you don't need to take your education seriously. You've also done a thorough job of corrupting Miss Weasley. Sit down and put your wand away."

Acting like he cared a whit about me again? I counted backwards from ten to stop myself from asking how his blackboard was doing. Finally, after what seemed like ages of staring at me, he went back to his lecture. And on and on and on. We spent the entire hour listening to him drone on about competing theories of defensive strategies. It was a little bit interesting, but he was a horrendous lecturer.

Hermione was furiously taking notes, flipping back and forth between pages, as he jumped from one idea to another and back again. The rest of us gave up halfway through the class. Ron had an extremely frustrated look in his face.

Finally, the lesson was over. Snape called out an assignment, six inches on a curse he had discussed that day, and then dismissed us.

Relieved to be done with the second day of class, I felt Harry's hand take mine. "Library or Common Room?" he asked.

"Library. Work first. Pouting is not becoming, dear."

Hermione and Ron caught up with us a few minutes later. "Why were you so late to class?" she demanded.

I was going to take the mickey out of Ron and whisper something about broom cupboards to Hermione, but Harry answered her. "Taking care of some jewelry." Her eyes showed her recognition.

Ron was not in a good mood as we fell into a table in the library. "Bloody greasy git is going to get us all killed," he complained.

"What happened?" I asked.

He glanced over at Hermione and then said, "I guessed you missed most of it. Snape said it's been a mistake for our practice to get ahead of theory. Most of our classes are going to be lectures, not practicals. He said that's more important for our OWLs."

Harry looked distressed at the very notion. "Death Eaters aren't checking your OWLs before deciding to attack."

Hermione agreed. "There's more important things than tests." Both boys looked stunned that she would say anything of the sort. She hit Ron lightly over the head with a roll of parchment. "Honestly!"

Madam Pince was giving us all dirty looks so we quieted down and started into our books, but it was hard to concentrate after everything that happened that afternoon. Hermione finally said, "Harry, you should talk to the headmaster about class. He couldn't be agreeing to this."

He shook his head and whispered, "He's let Snape do whatever he wants so far, I don't see that changing."

"Well, we have to do something…" I could see her thoughts churning.

I had to wait until that night to hear more. I was in my bed reading something a little trashy when Hermione walked in after finishing the rounds she had to make as prefect. "How'd it go?" I asked.

"Nothing terribly exciting. I was with Cho Chang, she's in Ravenclaw. Seemed to have more than a healthy interest in Harry, but mainly innocent questions. I made it clear the two of you are inseparable, so you don't have to go all Duchess' wrath on her, or whomever you're wasting brain power on over there."

I smirked and rolled my eyes. "Just a healthy imagination."

"Right… at any rate, we found a couple second-years from Slytherin who claimed they were lost. Gave me a bit of cheek, so we docked them five points and escorted them to the correct staircase."

Lavender and Parvati came in a few minutes later. "Where were you two?" Hermione asked, a little demanding.

Parvati curtly said, "Professor Trelawney asked us to help take some astrological observation notes in the Astronomy Tower."

Hermione's opinion of Divination was well-known, but she did say, "Well, at least she cares about her students' education."

Lavender said, "She's not that bad if you get to know her. Better teacher than Snape."

I said, "Hard to argue with that. He wasn't horrid to me my first couple years, but since our fourth year…"

"When you started dating his least favorite student…" Lavender said.

"Maybe he's jealous?" Parvati joked.

"Ewww…" we all said.

Hermione said, "Actually, that reminds me Ginny, something I wanted to get your help on… Snape's not teaching us anything worth knowing. You've done a lot better in Defense since you started practicing with Harry…"

She laid out her plan. It made sense but my sweetheart wasn't keen on any more attention than he already received. "I'm not sure…" I said.

"He'll do it if we both ask him."

I grinned, knowing she was right. "Give him a week or so, see if Snape changes his mind. Plus, Harry's kind of grumpy about Quidditch still." He wasn't the only one.

"It's just a stupid game!"

I laughed. "And people say you're the smartest witch of your age."

 ***Arthur***

I nervously tapped my quill on my desk until it struck half passes ten. "Jones, I need to step out and run some errands at lunch."

"Yes, sir," said my new assistant, who looked far too young to be working in the Ministry.

Sirius was waiting for me at a small cafe in the Muggle part of London that I had never heard of before. He had a table outside on the walk he was sitting on, drinking something brown and bubbling that wasn't tea.

I took a seat. "Good morning, Sirius."

"Morning, Arthur."

"Isn't it a bit warm to be drinking something boiling?"

He chuckled. "This is cold… it's called a soda. Something Lily introduced me too. Want to try one?" My ears perked up. That was something that I had heard of, just hadn't recognized what it was when I saw it. It explained so much.

"Sure." Anything muggle I could experience, I was game. Sirius waved for the server and placed an order for a drink. I also ordered a turkey sandwich, while Sirius had ham. We didn't want anything too heavy.

"Hope this isn't another false alarm from Snivellus," he said.

"Me too… then again, it'd be better if it was." I looked over and I could make out a primary school a block away. It wasn't a new building, maybe twenty years old. It looked to have been once yellow, but the paint had faded to almost an eggshell. There was a playground outside with swings and a slide, all surrounded by a fence. None of it currently being used; all the students must have been busy with their lessons. I really hoped it was a false alarm.

I took a cautious sip of my fizzy drink. It was rather sweet and the taste and feeling of the bubbles was definitely unique. I put it down and suddenly Sirius leaped to his feet. "Time to go!"

I saw a half dozen cloaks descending on the school. They were splitting into pairs, probably to take positions at each exit and cut down the children and staff as they would escape. Sirius had already apparated closer to the school, between the attackers and the main door. I first had to send a patronus to Dumbledore. "Attack in progress at the school, at least six Death Eaters." I told my weasel to forward the message and then I joined the fight. I appeared near the side door and attacked with furiosity. Trying to torture and kill children, no matter their blood. How could someone become so twisted to find it pleasurable sport?

Sirius and I had planned to first cast shield charms on the entrances, both keeping intruders out and the occupants in. Unfortunately, they wouldn't hold long in a concentrated attack. I appeared at the back door, drew my wand to charm it, and then eyed my two opponents. They were split and in front of me, each about a dozen paces away — one to my left and one to my right.

The one on the right started firing curses at me, but he didn't seem very concentrated. Over half of them missed wildly and the rest were easily blocked by my shield. The one on my left was much better. His spells were slower but more deliberate. I disarmed the first quickly but then felt a cold pain down my leg and the feeling of blood running down my calf. The second attacker had broken through with a decent cutting curse.

If he had been more experienced, I would have felt another one on the other leg without delay. However, he seemed to pause and admire his work, which gave me an opening. I concentrated on pushing through his shield and was able to send a spell to stun him that hit the mark. Then I got the first, who had bent down to retrieve his wand.

After those two were down, I healed my leg best I could — Molly would have to fix whatever mess I was making later, and I ran to the side of the school to see Sirius. He was busy at work, but with four of them, he had been busy keeping on defense. We started throwing stunners at the hooded figures as they closed in on the front of the school. I didn't recognize any of them with their masks on, but I knew it wasn't Bellatrix or any of the strong fighters. If it was, we would be in a much worse spot than the original six against two.

Then Sirius got one of them knocked out. I froze the ground by with a layer of ice under two of the attackers who had foolishly stayed too close together. They tumbled and two stunners in quick succession finished them off. I hoped this would end soon. I wasn't twenty anymore.

The last remaining attackers stared at me, curiously and then pressed his hand to the dark mark on his left arm. Sirius took him or her out immediately, but the damage was already done.

Before we could regroup, I heard an apparition crack. I whipped around and my heart sank. The one… man… that would never wear a mask. Voldemort's eyes burned through me.

"Arthur Weasley. Sirius Black." He cocked his head and his foot soldiers were awakened. By his face, I guessed he was not pleased with their performance. "Harry Potter's guardians and protectors. You failed in that role with his father and mudblood mother, Black. Taking in that boy not of your blood, most would find that admirable… or perhaps a weakness that will prove rather costly."

He paused for a moment and I heard him yelling "Crucio!" as an echo. My entire body exploded in pain, hot stabbing knives over every inch of my skin.

But then it stopped.

I slowly got up, my joints slowly aching, and I saw Dumbledore dueling him, bright flashes of light crossing the sky like nothing I had ever seen.

Sirius was trying to keep the Death Eaters busy. Finally back on my feet, I produced my strongest shield to guard him while he stayed on the offensive. Sirius looked back at me, very surprised.

I risked a glance at Dumbledore. He seemed to be slower than he used to be, but he was more than holding his own. Voldemort was faster but he almost seemed less powerful, barely stopping the spells sent his way.

And then just as suddenly as it started, the self-proclaimed dark lord disappeared.

With their master behind, the remaining Death Eaters were quickly disarmed before they could escape. Dumbledore performed the incarcerous charm and they were trundled up like a flock of Christmas geese. Sirius ripped off all their masks. "So young… I don't recognize any of them."

Dumbledore sadly said, "I do. All Hogwarts attendees, graduated in the last few years. So sad they chose this life."

"Bloody snakes," Sirius mumbled.

"Not all, Sirius. Two Slytherin, yes, but also two Ravenclaw, one Hufflepuff and this woman was in Gryffindor, I believe in Charlie Weasley's year. Peter Pettigrew was not the only Gryffindor that I've seen serve Voldemort."

Sirius nodded and Kingsley and Tonks soon appeared. "Sorry," the senior auror said. "There was an attack on Diagon Alley as well, four young Death Eaters. This is higher priority, I'll take care of them. Tonks, please handle the muggles inside."

She nodded and quickly her hair became light brown and her face became what I'd only describe as pretty but not memorable. Her auror uniform changed to black muggle semi-formal wear with a pantsuit and she transformed a rock into a clipboard. "On it," she said.

Dumbledore and Sirius were looking at me strangely. "Yes?" I asked, not sure if I wanted the answer.

Sirius spoke first. "Don't be offended, chap, but how are you walking around? You were under the cruciatus from Voldemort for over a minute. At your age…"

"I'm not that old."

Dumbledore chuckled. "I think we all are. But he's right, Arthur. I do not think it was for a lack of trying. I must think about the events of today."

Kingsley then added, "We don't need to be drawing any more attention to ourselves here. I'll take each of your statement back at the Ministry."

Dumbledore agreed but said. "I should get back to my school, just in case this isn't the end of it. Come by my office later if you need my testimony."

 ***Ginny***

Harry had been battling a massive headache all day. The four of us and Neville were sitting at our table in Great Hall, working on various assignments. Neville was actually tutoring Harry in some of the finer points in herbology. Ron and I were nearly experts, at least in the basics, after helping Mum in her garden, while Hermione... well, she was Hermione. There was some subtleties that Harry had never quite grasped and after a lot of aggressive persuading, he admitted he needed help if he wanted to get his OWL.

Snape strode towards the four of us and I felt Harry tense up in a stress response. Snape glared at him and said, "The headmaster just had to step out for a few minutes. Apparently Black and Arthur were trying to help a school and have wound up facing down the Dark Lord. Maybe with Dumbledore's help, they will survive. He had to leave so fast, he left the special floo powder keyed to his office lying on his desk."

My heart skipped several beats. Hermione had her arm around Ron, who was worried to death. I was too. I looked over at Harry just to see him bolting for the door.

He wouldn't…

I corrected myself. Yes, he most certainly would.

I jumped up and ran after him. Stupid robes.

I saw him fifteen yards ahead down the main corridor. "Harry!" I yelled. "Stop!"

He didn't even slow down.

His pace wasn't one I was going to match. Stupid short legs. Once he reached the stairs, I wouldn't be able to see him again. Hoping he would forgive me later, I cast the jelly-legs jinx and with the accuracy he had taught me, they made their target. Harry collapsed on the hard stone floor. Then I disarmed him before he could stop the jinx himself.

I ran to him. Harry glared at me, madder than I had ever seen them. "Let me be, Ginevra."

Ouch. I steeled myself. "You can be mad at me Harry, as long as you stay alive." I looked at him, blinking back tears and cancelled the jinx. I tried helping him up, but he refused my hand and sat up, a massive bruise forming on his cheek from where he fell.

He anxiously yelled, "I need to help them! I can't… I can't lose Sirius or Dad… your Dad."

"Dumbledore's there, he'll take care of them. If Tom's after them, it's because he is baiting you. He wants you to run after him."

"I don't care… I'll be fine," he said quietly, but no longer so confident.

I reached my hand over and he finally accepted my touch on his shoulder. "Dear, you were so worried that a fourteen year old nothing girl just handed you your hat, bum, and everything in between."

He immediately objected."You're not nothing, Gin... you're everything." He stopped for a moment and hung his head. "I'm an idiot."

"Forgive me, Harry… dear?" I asked.

He shook his head. "No, Gin, forgive me."

We both smiled and we helped each other up off the floor. "I'll think about it," I said with a wink. "Let's head up to Dumbledore's office, see if he's back."

Harry whipped out a piece of parchment, his map. "No need. I've kept this with me all the time this year so far."

He wasn't there at first, but after a few minutes, the headmaster reappeared. By the time we found him, Dumbledore was two flights up, strolling somewhat aimlessly, which was encouraging. We hurried and after the last few minutes, I promised myself I'd start running more. We finally had him in sight. "Professor?" Harry asked.

"Yes, Mr. Potter? I gather you heard about the attack?"

We both nodded. He continued, "Not to worry. Your father suffered a deep cutting curse to the leg and was under the cruciatus for a while, but nothing resting at home and some care from your mother won't handle. Sirius had a few bumps and such but he'll be fine."

I breathed out as if I had been holding it in for the last ten minutes.

"Thank you, sir."

With that burden lifted, we started walking back to the Common Room. "Gin, you can have the map back. It's just as much yours as mine; your brothers gave it to you."

"It's fine. Your dad was one of the authors. Plus, I can get it out of your footlocker if I need it and you're not around. You can't get into my room."

"Too bad," he said cheekily. It was a rather stupid and sexist rule. Like none of the girls would ever have a mind to sneak in for some snogging or more.

I kissed his cheek. "Behave."

"It's a struggle."


	15. Year 5, Part 3

***Ginny***

After our fight, I gave Harry another couple days but Hermione had just about worn me down. It had been another trying day with Snape not teaching us anything except how much he still hated James Potter. At supper that night however, Dumbledore interrupted us.

The headmaster rose and waited for everyone's attention. "Normally we would have held a Hogsmeade weekend by now. That is still not possible, but I was offered a suggested compromise by the owner of the Hog's Head.

"On Saturday after next, we will open up this hall for a few vendors to set up shop for the afternoon. Honeydukes, the Hog's Head, and a few other proprietors have already agreed to participate."

There were a few muted claps at that. It wasn't exactly the same, but it was something, at least for those of us with spare Galleons.

Dumbledore added, "To prevent overcrowding, each year will be given an hour-long slot, starting with the third-years at noon, fourths at one, and so on and so forth. If you wish to attend with other students outside your year, see your head of house."

After the excitement from the announcement had died down, we headed back to the tower. I smiled at Harry and took his hand. "Will you go with me, dear?"

"I'd love to, Gin. Even if it's just for an hour."

Then I added, "Harry, Hermione and I have something to ask…" That got Ron's attention.

I let Hermione speak. "Harry, Snape isn't teaching us anything."

"Never really did," he said.

She rolled her eyes. "It's worse now. And much more important." She paused for a moment and then said, "We need a better teacher. One that knows what it's like to face V-V-Voldemort."

"Sirius?"

"You."

"Hermione, I can't. I don't really know that much and I don't think I'd be a good teacher. Plus, I'm not sure why anyone would listen to me."

Ron said, "Mate, there's humility and all but you need to have some sense too. You spent every free moment last year practicing for the tournament. Some of that has to spill over into real life."

I added, "And you've been helping me and Ron with our aim and helping us practice the last two summers. I've learned a lot from you, luv, even if you weren't formally tutoring us."

Hermione finished. "And you don't know why anyone would listen? We were all there last May. We saw what happened."

"I couldn't save Viktor or Cedric," he said with his eyes looking at the ground."

I had to disagree. "But you fought back and survived. If you help, you'll be giving all of us a better chance of living."

When he hesitated I added in jest, "Don't make me bat my eyes."

"Or me," Hermione added.

Harry looked at Ron, expectantly. Ron shrugged his shoulders. "Eh, we had a good run."

Harry laughed. "All right, fine. I guess it's my turn to get ganged up on. But you're helping me plan the lessons, Hermione."

"Sounds splendid. We can work on it tomorrow and Ginny and Ron can spend the evening spreading the word."

It was difficult to find a way to talk to members of the other houses individually. I also didn't want to just approach the entire table at dinner. Most of the older students were working on midterm projects and revising for exams, so we decided to try the library. The next night after supper, we bumped into Seamus and Susan Bones at a table. They looked like they were maybe going to study at some point that evening, but it was doubtful. "Is this Irish layabout bothering you, Susan?" Ron teased.

Seamus defended himself. "You wound me, mate. I'll have you know that I have finally worn Susan down with my quick wit and dashing looks."

She slapped him in the shoulder flirtatiously. "I think I'm just the only one left who'll put up with your blarney."

I rolled my eyes. "Uh, congrats then, I think. Anyway, Harry is going to start a club in the evenings to practice defense and dueling, all houses welcome. I thought you could let the other Hufflepuffs know, Susan."

"Sounds brilliant. My aunt told me… between Snape's potions lessons and the Defense classes… a lot of auror applicants have needed remedial training and not many of them have the patience for that. Most students aren't leaving Hogwarts prepared to fight."

I spotted Luna and Cho a few tables down and decided to check Ravenclaw off the list. "Hi Luna. Hey, Cho." I paused, realizing I hadn't really talked to her since last year. I gently asked, "How are you? We're sorry about Cedric, I should have said something sooner."

She tried to smile. "It's not your fault. No one really has wanted to talk about that evening."

"Yeah, I had to really push Harry to not close off. He has that tendency." I sat down next to them. Ron was still interrupting Seamus's date. I sighed and thought of my talks with Harry over the summer.

"Nargles?" Luna asked me.

I snapped back to the present. "No… sorry. We are starting an informal club. Harry will be helping us practice defensive spells and dueling. We'd like you two to come and to invite the other Ravenclaws."

Cho looked a little concerned but they both agreed to attend. The first meeting would be in a couple weeks on the Wednesday before Hallowe'en.

We caught a few other people and then we decided that we'd let them spread the word from there. Ron and I headed back towards our tower.

The Common Room was fairly empty by this point in the evening but I saw the twins and Lee Jordan off to one side. Jordan reluctantly popped a cream puff into his mouth and he disappeared in a cloud of yellow. A few seconds later, the cloud dissipated and he was now sporting yellow feathers.

We ran over, alarmed. Fortunately, Jordan molted and was back to his usual self soon enough. He and the twins had a great laugh. George finally noticed us. "Ginny, Ron. Want to try a canary cream?"

"I think I'm full still," said Ron. "Jordan, are you ok?"

"Yeah, no worries. Felt a bit… feathery?"

"I'll try," I said.

"Great," Fred said as he passed me the confection, "we haven't tried on a girl yet. They can be different."

"So we've heard," added George.

I grinned and quickly swallowed. I felt a ticklish shimmer through my skin. I looked at my arms and they were indeed very feathered. It seemed to last longer for me, but that could have just been my perception. Finally I was back to my normal self, freckles and all.

Fred and George celebrated with a handclap. "Two for two!" they said in unison.

"So are you really going to try for your joke shop after Hogwarts?" I asked.

George shrugged, trying to seem unconcerned. "Would love to and Aberforth said we could even set up with his booth next week, but funds for ingredients are almost out. We made several wagers last year and won… but it was with Ludo and the goblins took every last knut he had. Didn't even get back our deposit."

"Could you try for a loan?" Ron asked.

Fred shook his head. "Gringotts only gives money to people who already have it. We're just a couple kids, too big of a risk."

The twins were normally unstoppable and always cheerful. They must really have been at loose ends to be feeling this way and especially to admit it.

"What about a personal loan from friend or family?"

They looked at each other. It was obvious who I meant. "Ginny, we couldn't ask Harry."

"I think he'd be hurt if you knew he could help you and you didn't ask. Just consider." I changed topics. "Are you two joining the Defense Club?"

"Should be great! Much more exciting than class and less chances of getting greasy."

They showed Ron and I a few of their other inventions. One that I knew would be a big seller was the puking pastilles. They were sweets where one half would give you a bloody nose, uncontrollable sneezing and the like, to get you excused from class, while the other had the antidote after you had escaped. It was a bit childish, but so was class sometimes. My brothers were going to make a fortune if they could get started.

Harry and Hermione dragged themselves back after ten. My boyfriend was bleary-eyed and noticeably tired as he slipped down next to me. I leaned against him and let him play with my hair. "Tough night?"

Harry chuckled. "A bit. Hermione the star student has nothing on Hermione the aspiring teacher."

"Teaching assistant and lesson planner, Harry. You're going to be the main attraction," she said.

"Wonderful," he said sarcastically.

"Well, dear, at least it's something positive and your choice instead of something you're being forced into that makes you miserable."

He nodded and then kissed me on the cheek softly. "Yes, ma'am. I'll try to stop pouting."

"Good, it's not becoming. Makes it hard for me to see your eyes properly."

Fred cleared his throat. "Harry, could we have a word alone?"

He looked concerned, but then George added, "it's nothing bad. You can go snogging our sister afters."

"Sure, then." He grinned.

Fred motioned with his hand to a quiet corner. "Let's move to our office."

Before I knew it, Ron and Hermione had gone off together. I was tired enough to go to bed, but I wanted to hear what was happening from Harry and we always tried to say goodnight.

A few minutes later Harry was back and the twins were headed up to their dorm. "Hey, Gin."

"Mmmh…" I said with a smile as he rubbed the back of my neck. "Talking business?"

"How did you… yeah. They asked if I could loan them fifty galleons so they could owl-order supplies for their joke products."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, but I said I couldn't do that. I tried to give them five hundred, as a gift, but they talked me down to two hundred. If they are successful, we will talk later about me setting them up to start an actual business, maybe even on Diagon Alley, for a silent partnership. So I guess you're probably stuck with me."

I hopped him on the nose. "Pity. I was about to see about having a go at Dean," I said with a wink and a smile.

Before I knew it, I was in his lap and he was tickling my ribs without mercy. I was uncontrollably giggling. "Harry…. please…"

"Nope! Not with jokes like that…"

"I bet… I bet I can make you stop."

"I'd like to see you try…"

So I grabbed his hands and pressed my nose to his. I felt his arms pull me in closer. "I love you, Harry Potter. Just you."

"I love you too, Ginny Weasley."

"Good night."

"I'll miss you, all night."

I whispered in his ear, "Someday." I meant it.

 ***Arthur***

The weather was unseasonably warm for October, so I spent a few minutes taking care of some things I had been neglecting around the yard. I had been working late most evenings. The ministry was barely hanging on with all the Death Eater activity.

The previous week I had to help clean up after a dementor was loosed in a small village in Wales. I still saw that small girl, slumped over with the vacant look in her eyes whenever I closed mine.

After I finished up with the chores, I took a quick wash, kissed Molly, and headed into work.

A little bit of happiness was headed my way. Shortly before luncheon, I saw a tuft of pink and purple hair come invading my office. "Tonks, something wrong? Can I help you with anything?" Remus was holding her hand and Sirius was right behind them.

"No, Arthur, nothing like that. We just wanted to say hi. I took the day off."

"Then why are you in this place, with these two characters?"

"Well, not sure about Sirius, but Remus was necessary since we were applying for a marriage license."

"Wow! Congratulations to both of you. Come in and take a seat." Once they did, the door closed. "Really, really happy for both of you. Have an idea for a date?"

Remus almost blushed. "Today, about ten minutes ago."

I tried to not have a terribly stunned look on my face. "Oh, my. That was quick."

Sirius said, "Well, strike when the iron's hot, I say."

Tonks slapped him in the shoulder. "We never were planning on a large ceremony — not something I wanted and not something either of us wanted to pay for. Plus, I can just imagine what Bellatrix would try to do if she knew someone from her bloodline was…"

"Marrying a werewolf," Remus quietly answered. "I still am worried…"

Tonks nuzzled into his side for a moment. "I don't care about any of that. I'm an auror and Dad's a muggle, so I wasn't expecting a housewarming gift from Bellatrix regardless. And you're already stuck with me, love."

Remus smiled and nodded. "At any rate, one of the officiants was in this morning and Sirius was already there as a witness."

He interjected, "I wanted to know where the office was, just in case I ever decide to disappoint most of the witches in Britain and settle down."

Tonks rolled her eyes and Remus continued. "We figured, why wait?"

She said, "I think I waited bloody long enough already and didn't fancy waiting any more. Remus is too traditional for his own good." I chuckled as I saw him squirm under the implication.

"Well, I'm glad she finally wore you down. Molly will want to make a spread and host a reception for you sometime. Maybe over the holidays so the kids can be there? They all loved you as a professor."

"I did my best."

"You cared. That's too rare today."

There was an awkward moment of silence. Sirius broke it by saying, "Any problems from our last brush with Voldemort?"

"No, I've been fine, thank you."

Remus asked, "Do you mind if I try a charm on you? It reveals certain information about powerful spells performed on you, such as unforgivables."

'Sure, go ahead."

Remus stood up and muttered an incantation. A kaleidoscope of colors appeared before me and then slowly dwindled to a small constellation. "Here we are," he said. "Curious…" He flicked his wand and the lights disappeared. "The power of that spell was significantly less than I expected."

Sirius said, "I wouldn't chalk that up to his not having his heart into it."

"No, of course not. I talked with Dumbledore a little once I had learned about the horcruxes, whether or not Voldemort would know what we were doing." Remus stowed his wand and put his hands in his pockets. "Our magic comes from within, from our very souls. The wands we carry are merely used to focus the magic for a purpose."

Tonks exhaled slowly. "And he's lost a big chunk of his."

Sirius ticked it off, "The diary, locket, and the cup. Close to half of his soul."

"Can… can that grow back?" I asked suddenly.

"I don't see how a soul could ever regrow," Sirius said.

"Actually, Sirius… it does all the time. Souls regenerate. When a couple conceives a child, where does that soul come from other than a piece of his parents? Obviously, that would have to grow back or poor Arthur here would be badly off, and he seems fit as a fiddle after siring seven children."

I said, "Very funny, Remus. That's a different circumstance, though. I don't think he'd grow his back just over time."

"No, I don't either. Maybe if he felt remorse… grief… some form of love in the shadow of all that he's done. But I don't see that happening."

Tonks cut in. "No, not bloody likely. But if that's all true… we may actually have a chance!"

Sirius said, "He still has his Death Eaters, and more each day as long as they believe."

My heart skipped a beat. "Then we need to shake that."

"Exactly…" Sirius said and then stopped. "I'll have some plans ready to discuss soon. For now, I think my cousin has better ideas on how to spend her afternoon."

She winked and Remus didn't need any more encouragement to leave.

"And what about yourself, Sirius?"

"Heh. Well, James probably would roll over in his grave if I was ever hitched. Lily would probably win a few bets. With everything, I don't think it's the right time for me. Maybe after all this is over," he shrugged. "You still helping Dumbledore stake out the Department of Mysteries?"

I nodded.

"I wish you wouldn't. A little bird told me that they are going to be making a move sometime soon."

"All the more reason I need to help keep watch. I'll make sure to sound the alarm and get help if anything comes of it."

I could tell he didn't want to argue more. Instead, he said, "Well, I'll let you get back to your work. Please take care of yourself."

"You too, Sirius."

 ***Ginny***

Harry stood at a doorway most of the students had never noticed. He explained, "This is called the Room of Requirement. Hogwarts shapes it to the needs of those who ask. We thought it would be a good training area."

He led the way. It was not as large of a group as he had feared, maybe thirty altogether. Most of our year in Gryffindor was there as well as some from other years, including the twins, Luna, Cho, and a few other Ravenclaws. Harry had recruited Zacharias Smith, and he brought along a few of his fellow Hufflepuffs. No Slytherins showed. Either they were all following Malfoy or they didn't want to be seen as going against him.

I stepped through the door and thought I heard a whisper while crossing the threshold. After the door was shut, the noise stopped. The room was just large enough for us all. There were several dueling dummies set up, pillows to summon and banish, and some lanes set up for dueling. There was plenty of muttering and gasps from students who had never used the room.

Harry looked around. "I didn't ask the room for the dummies…"

Neville sheepishly spoke up, "I was thinking they would be helpful. I need to practice my aim."

"No worries. The room must really like you, usually it doesn't seem to take orders from multiple people."

Harry took center stage while Hermione stood to his left. I stood towards the front next to Luna, Lavender, Parvati and her sister. My boyfriend began speaking.

"Thanks all for coming. I'm not one for giving speeches, but Hermione insisted I should say a few words. I hope we are all here for the same reason, to practice and learn from each other. There's a war going on and any of us, all of us, may be forced to play a part... I know that's rather terrifying to consider."

Michael called out, "I'm not sure we will ever be good enough."

Harry replied. "Maybe, maybe not. Definitely not if you think like that. But all of you, remember that Dumbledore, McGonagall, every auror… they all started as students. If they were what we are, we can get better. We sure as hell will be better off than accepting what we've been getting."

Hermione added "One other thing. We will be concentrating on skills and spells that can be useful in a fight. This is not an OWL study group."

Harry smiled. "Right. If you want one of those, see Hermione afterwards for a revising schedule," he half joked. "Not saying those aren't important, but we have to focus on the business of surviving. Now, let's start! First up, disarming spells and shields."

Ron had drawn the short stick apparently. He stood up and tried to disarm Harry, who blocked several attempts with a shield. Then they switched. My brother survived the first two attempts and then was shoved backwards as his wand came loose and flew to another corner of the room.

After they demonstrated a few more times, we paired up into groups while Harry walked around, making corrections as needed.

I ended up with Parvati. She had some raw strength but thanks to my dad, being able to practice during the last few summers really made a difference.

Harry took Cho's hand to help correct her aim. She smiled and suddenly, my wand was gone. "Damn!" I muttered.

Parvati smiled and summoned it for me. With all the wands flying around, it was a no one had a poked eyeball. "Jealous, Ginny?"

I grit my teeth, cursing myself out for being distracted so easily. "Just try me again." I had to be ready for much worse things. I wasn't going to let a single spell get through again.

Before I knew it, the hour had passed. Harry had us practice stunners and some other basics, just to get an idea where everyone was. Everything present was learning that performing a spell on a test was nothing compared to doing it when it mattered. We were called to the centre of the room. "Thanks, all. Any questions or comments?"

Fred said, "Thanks for putting this together, mate. You're already the best Defense teacher we've had except for Lupin."

Dean said, "But… didn't Professor Snape say he was a werewolf?"

I saw the training dummy close to Harry suddenly break off its stand and fly ten feet, finally landing on the floor. His deep emerald eyes were almost burning. I was afraid he was going to yell, but he calmed down and instead he spoke low and soft, his voice with a slight tremble. "Professor Lupin was a fine teacher. He's a good man and, yes, a werewolf. He was also one of my father's best friends. Once a month he transforms involuntarily but he takes a potion; he's perfectly safe. He also just married a knockout several degrees above your league and I won't take comments like that about him or anyone else."

Dean quietly apologized.

Harry said, "Blood doesn't matter. Raw talent can get you started but it's not enough. I have decided just now to give one bit of homework."

I heard a few grumbles. "Don't worry, this'll be easy. First, practice as much as you can. And second, I need you to all memorize this fact. Voldemort…" A few gasps. "Ok.. one and a half is say his bloody name. Number two is know that Voldemort's real name is Tom Riddle, junior. Tom Riddle senior was a muggle."

He paused and then said, "And let all that that implies sink in. You are your choices, not your parents or your past. Defense club adjourned. Hermione will let you know the next meeting time and date."

We had enough time to not have to hurry back to the tower. Harry and I held hands with Hermione and Ron next to Hermione. She said, "You maybe came down on Dean a little rough."

Harry replied, "Yeah, maybe. I'm still mad at Snape for outing him like that. Not really any of their business."

I stuck up for him. "But it's like Sirius said. Tom isn't the problem. It's everyone who follows him outright or quietly supports his beliefs. If he was the only one who felt that way, a lot of people would still be here."

Ron added, "Dad's fought for what's right every day without a lot of help. I'm not sure what I'm going to do once I'm out of here, but it can't just end with Voldemort. First it was Grindelwald, then him… how many others before the problem is fixed. You are so smart, Hermione. You shouldn't have to worry about your choices of jobs just because of your parents. Not that there's anything wrong with them.

She smiled, "Thank you, Ron. Having friends like you and your family make it all work it."

We reached our tower and it was time for bed. We found a secluded corner, Harry drew me close, and kiss me softly for several seconds. As I pulled away, I saw Hermione give Ron a quick peck on the cheek when she thought we were distracted. He turned a few shades that matched my hair and then quickly shuffled off to bed.

"What?" Harry asked, seeing me distracted.

"Nothing…" I whispered. "I'm really proud of you, dear. See you tomorrow."

When I went upstairs, I slipped out of my school robes and into my nightwear. "So," I said looking at Hermione and whispering, "decided to frazzle my brother a bit?"

"Excuse me?"

"Your lips. Ron's cheek?"

She smiled. "Oh… well, I've been hinting all week that I wouldn't mind some company at the substitute Hogsmeade weekend, such as it is. He finally got the message to ask. I do enjoy flustering him sometimes, it's so cute… and sexy."

"Eww… that is my brother you are describing.. "

"Wow… hypocrite much? I've had to watch you and Harry snog for over a year now."

I grinned. "Just wait until you move beyond the cheek. His head'll explode." I got comfortable and found a book. "Now I have to stay up to get that picture out of my head."

Our turn to shop wasn't until two, so we had some time after breakfast Saturday morning. Homework was already done. Harry, Ron, and Neville were playing exploding snap for the third time that morning. Hermione was staying in the library and I was having a hard time doing anything but lusting after my Firebolt that I hadn't been able to use since summer.

I grabbed Harry's invisibility cloak out of his chest and decided to see what Luna was doing. The Ravenclaws were different, their password was a riddle and anyone willing to figure it out could come in. Not many people had bothered learning that, which was a shame. I had learned that interesting bit from Tom, who prided himself on knowing everything about the school.

This time the riddle took only two guesses. The doors creaked open. I was greeted by the statue of Rowena Ravenclaw wearing a replica of her lost diadem. Luna and her dad has been trying to make a replica for as long as I could remember without success.

I found Luna behind mountainous stacks of papers — blank sheets that were being transformed into prints. I looked closer and I saw the title of one as Luna performed another duplication charm which she was becoming very adept at… "The Quibbler, Hogwarts edition," I read aloud.

"Oh, hello, Ginny," she said in her sing-song voice.

"Hi, Luna. Making these up for the afternoon?"

"Oh, yes. Your beau contributed to this edition, actually. I think your friend Hermione helped him, but she insisted on not getting a writer's credit for some reason. It's a little more practical than our usual articles, but it should be helpful."

She handed me a copy from the top of the pile. The left column was titled, "Helpful Habits to Help keep your friends and family safe and well." It was a list of suggested practices. A few were standard such as having security questions to make sure no one was impostering using Polyjuice and not traveling by yourself. Some of the others were unique. Make more friends. Don't leave someone when one of you was mad. Help others in need. Things that I had learned from my dad and mum but that we could always be reminded of.

"That's really good," I said. I knew he had been thinking about writing up something for the next Defense Club meeting, but this was somewhat a surprise.

"Yes, I think so. It did bump my investigation regarding the vampire takeover in Finland to the back page, but I can always post an update later. Fred and George said they'd give away a copy with each sale they make today."

"How are you making money if you're giving it away?"

"Harry bought all of them at our bulk rate," she said matter-of-factly

Wow. I wasn't sure what the rate for a short student edition was, but that large pile had to have been a handful of galleons. Harry was keeping himself busy. I smiled thinking about him. "Well, I'll leave you to finishing your work."

"Here, I'll help you out until you're ready to head to lunch."

"Thanks, Ginny."

A while later, towards the end of the lunch hour, we were walking towards our meal and each of us carrying a large stack of prints. The twins were on one end of the Gryffindor table and we dropped the papers next to their plates. "Thanks, Luna," said Fred.

"Where's Harry?" George asked. "I've seen a lot of you two apart lately… anything we need to know about?"

I shook my head. "No, we're fine. We've just been trying to catch up with our other friends. Maybe slow down a little. I'm still completely in love with him."

"Talking about anyone I know?" I heard his voice behind me.

"Just you," I said with a smile and a hug.

"I'm very much in love with you Miss Weasley."

I couldn't help not blushing. Then I thought of something. "Would you two want some help today? Harry and I could help draw a crowd."

George looked at Fred and then said, "Sure, brilliant. Aberforth may not be quite so happy, but it'll work."

So after we set up their little booth. George put on the finishing touch, a sign with a disclaimer declaring that the products were only intended for good-natured pranking and fun and not at all for avoiding classes or homework.

Harry and I spent most of the afternoon demonstrating some of the products on each other. Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, they called it. I saw Harry's carefree smile, which had been missing for a few weeks. Then I saw my youngest brother walking next to Hermione, his fingers brushing hers every so often, not sure what to do. When he wasn't looking, she smiled in my direction.

Harry whispered to me, "Are we helping out so we have an excuse to be around but give them their space?"

"Maybe… just trying to help a friend, dear… look sharp!"

Dumbledore approached his brothers' booth. "Aberforth," he greeted him.

"'Lo, Albus."

"Interesting assortment of sweets you have, Mr. Weasleys," he smiled to himself. "Canary cream? I've heard rumours of what you two have been up to… how long does the transformation last?"

"Just a few seconds, headmaster."

"Couldn't keep it stable otherwise."

"I see… may I suggest a pinch of squid ink? It may also improve shelf life."

The twins grinned at each other. "Excellent, we'll try it."

"And it appears I will need to warn Madam Pomfrey regarding a potential spike in nosebleeds and flatulence. Hopefully it won't get too distracting or we will have to confiscate whatever the cause reveals itself to be."

"Of course, sir."

"Carry on. And good show of initiative and creativity. Five points to each of you and another five for Harry and your sister for helping their family."

The rest of the term went by quickly. The weekly club meetings took up a lot of our time but I could see the confidence and skill increasing in everyone who attended, especially myself. Harry was coming into his own as a leader and I couldn't wait to share my pride at Christmas with Mum and Dad.


	16. Year 5, Part 4

*Arthur*

It was just about the close of business the night before the children would be coming home for Christmas holidays. I was nearly blinded as a terrific white light flashed on my desk as Dumbledore's phoenix suddenly appeared in the room. He had a bit of parchment tied to his foot. I untied it gently and the firebird was gone as soon as it had arrived.

I read the contents and sighed inside. Snape said that Voldemort was sending a couple new recruits to probe the defenses around the Hall of Prophecies in the Department of Mysteries. He still wanted to hear the rest of the foretelling that had twined the life of him and Harry so long ago.

Just as important was that we didn't need him to realize how low-staffed the guard in the ministry had become. Any auror that was still active was working double overtime cleaning up Death Eater attacks. They would pop in, send off a few spells, and leave before they could be captured. The actual damage being done far was outweighed by the terror in the magical community was experiencing day in and day out. If they attacked the Ministry, the only chance we had would be Dumbledore arriving before it was too late.

I conjured my patronus and sent a simple message to my wife. "I'm staying late tonight, sorry. I love you and will see you soon."

She responded quickly. "I love you. I'll keep dinner warm."

I sighed and smiled at her thoughtfulness. I cast a warming spell on myself since the downstairs level wasn't occupied at night and so wasn't heated thoroughly.

I cautiously made my way passed the Unspeakable's library and to the Hall of Prophecy, specifically to the prophecies made in the early eighties. I normally wouldn't have been allowed anywhere near here. However, Minister Bones had given me and several others working with Dumbledore a special, quiet dispensation. It still wouldn't be good for me to be seen wandering the halls by most other ministerial employees, so I did my best to avoid others.

This was the thirteenth time that I had taken guard duty here for the Order of the Phoenix. So far, all I had learned was that the halls were quite dull at night. I knew better than to touch or look too closely at anything down here, lest it be dangerous to an unwary soul. I placed some detection wards that Sirius and Bill both taught me at the entrances. Then I spent most of the night walking between them, making sure they were still strong and hadn't been tampered with. So far, not a single sign of anyone around.

Being a department head (albeit for a normally very small department), I had some excuse to being up and around in case I was found out. That excuse would not have passed muster if Molly was here with me — and the minister didn't need any additional headaches. It wouldn't do for the whole Wizengamot to hear about this, considering Lucius was unfortunately still a prominent member. So she stayed at home. Percy had joined me for the first few evenings, but he wasn't that dedicated and it still was a little awkward between us after the debacle that had happened last year with Crouch.

So tonight I was solo.

I had just finished re-checking the ward on the north hallway. I mainly occupied my time with my own thoughts. Tonks had only taken a couple days off for her honeymoon with the demands that were being placed on the aurors. Sirius had promised giving them a much grander trip when all of this was over.

Molly was ecstatic for them, but less so when I told her that Bill had come to me and asked my advice regarding proposing to Fleur. They had only been together since September and Fleur had just finished school, but she wasn't any younger than Molly and I had been.

Bill had never dated anyone seriously enough to let me know, enjoying the ability to come and go for his job. So I hadn't really expected they would be moving that fast. However, by the second week she was staying with us, I could already tell that the conversation we would have in December was coming eventually. True love was a personal commitment, a decision, and if he was ready to make that, why wait years for some sense of proprietary?

Of course, that led me to consider my youngest. She was only fourteen but I had already come to the firm belief that we would be having her wedding shortly after her seventeen birthday. Not unheard of for a pure-blood witch (or even younger with parental permission, though that was rare now), but it wouldn't necessarily have been my plan for her. But then, very little of anyone's life was going to plan.

I was yanked out of my thoughts by the wailing of the alarm ward to the south being triggered. I drew my wand and sent an alert to the rest of the Order.

I started hurrying toward the great hallways that housed the globes of prophecies but then stopped. I heard a lot of spellfire and shattering glass. Then raised voices. Some members of the Order were trying to get in.

I double-checked the wards' statuses and realized there was a new triggered alarm on the other side, near the library. Confused, I rushed towards the new intrusion. Whatever book or scroll they were after, getting it couldn't be good for Harry.

I passed by the room with the Veil. Never had been in it personally, but heard rumours. The Unspeakables kept a tight guard on during the day. I heard books being dropped on the floor and ran towards the noise.

Suddenly, I felt flattened against an invisible wall. I lost my footing and ended up on my back, my head cracking against the stone floor. Dazed, I started to get up and was stopped by a cackling, disturbingly playful laugh. "Typical for a muggle-loving blood traitor from Gryffindor. Run headfirst without a plan straight into a trap."

The voice stepped into clear view. All I could see was a crazed face behind the black robes of a Death Eater. "Bellatrix…"

"That's Ms. Lestrange to you, Weasley!" I had barely stood up before she spoke again. "Crucio!"

The pain was somehow even worse than Voldemort's. My very core was being ripped apart, flesh from joints and marrow.

Then it stopped. Daring to open my eyes, Bellatrix cocked her head to one side and then the other, almost curious. Some people, you can see their soul, their life in their eyes. With her, she had no hint of compassion or care. Only hatred and rage.

I felt something cold brush along my leg. It was Voldemort's snake. The beast was massive, at least my weight, one large coil of muscle. It pressed against me and then slithered behind the feet of Bellatrix.

Bellatrix sighed in mock boredom. "Any other Order members that you expect won't be coming. By the time they realize you're not with those silly globes… I suppose I should relieve you of your wand before you try anything foolish. Expelliarmus!"

I put up my strongest shield and the spell bounced off. I wasn't giving up so easily.

"So you do want to make this enjoyable," she said with a disturbing smile.

I fired a stunner at her which she easily blocked. She returned fire with a cutting curse that I barely avoided. Then I was knocked to the floor by the snake which had tripped me up. Bellatrix laughed and repeated the disarming spell.

My wand flew into her hand and she quickly grabbed it and snapped it in two. "Much better." It was soon followed with a paralyzing curse. Not the normal one I'd learned as a boy, but this one felt like a barbed fence tied around me. Every attempted inch of movement resulted in pain. I soon gave up any idea of struggling.

Then she walked towards me, bent over and pressed her nails against my left wrist. She licked her lips and dug in, breaking through skin while raking back and forth until… "Ah, there it is. Portkey bracelet. Too bad the little present from Sirius wasn't kept a secret." She pressed deep into my skin until I let it go. Bellatrix then stowed it in her robes and licked my blood from her fingers.

The snake let go of my legs and went to her as she released the paralysis curse. "My master wanted Nagini to accompany me. She is very intelligent and follows the Dark Lord's will unswervingly."

I stood back up defiantly. "She's a pet. Just as much as you are."

That stopped her gloating. She looked ready to curse me but then thought differently. "You still have some spirit, Arthur. Something your family might even be proud of. You do know you are going to die tonight. My lord wants the world to see what happens to anyone that helps 'ickle Hawwy."

She hit me with another cruciatus curse, this time much longer than the first. I started seeing blackness in the corners of my eyes and it kept creeping towards the middle. Before I lost all vision, it stopped.

Bellatrix waited for me to regain my senses before continuing. "And I have my own reasons for your punishment. The Dark Lord wants to have the pleasure himself, you should feel honored.

"But after your dealings with our long-fingered friends, I'm afraid you might be having a little accident trying to escape."

Since seeing her, I had been terrified. My greatest fear was Voldemort would find out from my head we were on to his greatest secret. But now it seemed she had a secret she wanted to keep. My voice was cracking and weak from pain, but I managed to say, "What do you want?"

She smiled as she trained her wand on me. "If you amuse me enough, I will grant you a quicker death than my master would. Now… run!"

I took off as best as I could with the little control of my legs I still had. But I soon faced an aisle with no way out. Nagini closes the ground to me and then stopped, staring and hissing while slowly wrapping around my waist.

Finally, Bellatrix reappeared, this time cradling a large book with cracked leather binding and the snake rejoined her. "Too bad you don't have a map of the area, isn't it Arthur? I did have time to find what I was looking for, so it's been a pleasant evening so far. At least for one of us. You have presented some amusement. Any more blood and Nagini will finish the evening, so do be careful. Now I said, run!"

She let the bloody snake catch up to me two more times. Despair had completely taken hold, which was her plan all along, I was sure. "You're not actually trying to escape, are you? There's nothing down this hall except a wall ward you won't be breaking without your wand. One more chance, you poor soul, and then I'm afraid our lovely time together will be at an end."

I knew then I had one more gift I could give my family. I gathered my courage and strength and dashed out towards the Hall of Prophecies. I reached my goal, a door to a dark, quiet room. I flung the door open and approached the whispers calling me from the Veil.

Bellatrix found me before the snake. She unleashed a powerful cutting curse that bit deep into my thigh. That alone was going to be damage enough if the blood flow wasn't stopped. Soon, the snake appeared, slithering slowly through the door.

I hobbled back as far as I safely could go. I braced myself against the side wall. Nagini focused on the scent of my blood, and licked the air.

Suddenly, she sprung. Her teeth ripped into my neck as her body wrapped around mine. I barely had the strength to move, but in excruciating pain I made my way towards the Veil. Then I felt myself stiffen and then blackness consumed me.

*Ginny*

I had gotten to bed late that night. I had to pack a bag for the two weeks of Christmas holidays, since there weren't a lot of clothes that fit me back home. Harry had a few other ideas of how to spend the evening though.

I felt someone shaking my shoulder. Frightened, I shot up and was about to reach for my wand when I realized it was Professor McGonagall. "Miss Weasley, are you awake?" she whispered.

"Yes, ma'am." My eyes adjusted and I saw her face clearly. "What is it?"

"Your father was badly injured and is at St. Mungo's. Get dressed. You can use Professor Dumbledore's floo."

I hurriedly found a trainer and pants to throw on and grabbed my holiday pack. I didn't want to risk waking everyone by lighting the lantern.

As we exited the dormitory, I asked, "What happened?"

"I don't have a lot of details. Your father was at the Ministry late standing watch and he was attacked. He's alive, but it is touch and go. Your mother's with him."

I forced myself to breathe. "Where are Harry and my brothers?"

"Already there. They couldn't get to your room of course so they found the headmaster and he sent for me. Ron said Harry is with Sirius but was vague."

"Ok." The rest of the story would have to wait. The professor opened Dumbledore's office for me. He was also apparently out as well. I quickly took some of the floo powder, clearly shouted, "St. Mungo's!" and stepped into the flames.

The witch at the front desk greeted me. "Uh, can I help you Miss?"

"I'm Arthur Weasley's daughter."

"Of course, I should have known it by the hair. Your family is in room 104, straight down the hall."

I yelled, "Thanks!" as I was already running in that direction. Within a few minutes, I saw a crowd gathered in a bright white hallway, outside a brown door. All my brothers minus Charlie were there, along with Fleur and Sirius. I got closer and saw Harry behind Ron, who was now definitely taller than him.

I slowed down to not plough anyone over. I wrapped my arms around Harry, who weakly smiled. Bill filled me in. "Mum's in there, the healers are still working on him but she insisted. They didn't need all of us though."

I looked at Harry and he looked like he had been through hell. "What happened?"

Sirius quietly said, "Can't talk about it here. We will later."

I nodded. After another half hour of anxious silence, a healer came out with Mum. He said, "I'm Healer Clinton. Mr. Weasley suffered long exposure to several very strong cruciatus curses, some deep cuts and bruises, and puncture wounds that look like a venomous snake bite. He's no longer in any immediate danger, but he will be in much difficulty for awhile. He will be unconscious for several hours. Mrs. Weasley will be staying with him and a mediwitch will be monitoring him constantly for the next free hours."

He paused and then said, "You can spend the night in the waiting room, we have cots and pillows available." When none of us moved, he added, "When he does wake, I'm sure your father will want to see you alert and awake and not sick with worry." We took the hint and Sirius led us away.

We found some chairs in an anteroom and huddled together in a circle. Bill broke the silence. "Can I ask what happened? I'm wakened in the middle of the night by Sirius' patronus and find out Dad's was inches from dying…"

Sirius cast some silencing spells and looked at Harry, but he didn't show any inclination in speaking.

Finally, Ron started to talk. "I guess it started with me. Harry was alternating moaning and yelling and it woke me up. I thought he was having a fit." Ron looked over at Harry, whose face showed he'd gave rather skipped this part. "Sorry, mate. It was scary! Anyways, all four of us in the room were up and we finally got Harry to come to.

"He shot up and said to tell Dumbledore that Dad was in trouble. Then he pressed a stone at his portkey bracelet and and vanished."

Harry softly explained, "I saw Da.. Mr. Weasley being attacked by Bellatrix and Voldemort's snake. I wanted to go find him but I remembered the portkeys so I went to Sirius."

"And it's a good thing you did, lad," Sirius said. "Harry described a library and I knew Arthur had been helping stand watch at the Ministry.

"The building has enchantments preventing direct apparition… human apparition. I told Kreacher I had to help your dad fight Voldemort, and with the charm Arthur had, we were able to know where he was precisely. Kreacher was able to pop me in right behind Bellatrix. Arthur had the snake wrapped around him, mere yards from the Veil, the Unspeakables' portal to the world of the Dead."

I felt a few tears rolling down my cheek. Harry slowly put an arm around me.

Sirius continued. "I cast a paralyzing stunner that hit both him and the snake. But by the time I had my wand trained on my cousin, she sent a few curses my way and escaped."

Fleur said something in French that they didn't teach in French class. Sirius chuckled, "Yes, couldn't have said it better. But I made the best of it. I untangled Arthur and the snake and then tossed it into the Veil."

Fred and George whistled. "So another one gone."

"Yes, didn't have time to celebrate though, with your dad bleeding out and been through the worst Bellatrix could dish out. Kreacher got us here while Dumbledore tried getting the situation in the Hall of Prophecies sorted out. Looks like some wannabe Death Eaters got frustrated and destroyed half the prophecies there. Probably not a pleasant night for them when they give their report… I guess that's everything."

"Wow," was all Bill could say. "We're lucky Dad made it out."

"Definitely," Ron agreed.

Over the next free minutes, our group slowly drifted apart, some getting a drink if water, others trying to find a comfortable place to get some sleep.

I was able to get Harry alone. He has been quiet, even for him. "Talk to me, Harry."

He sighed. "I'm afraid you're going to scare… I can trust you?"

"Always, love. And you know I don't scare easily."

He slowly began. "I was the snake. In my dream. It was as if I was chasing after your dad, trying to bite him. It was horrible."

I took his hand. "You know that wasn't you. You're just seeing things through his eyes, because of that thing."

He nodded. "What if he can try to control me, like the snake? Maybe I should be happy I have it, since I saved Dad, but I just want the damned thing out!"

"I know… I know." I stroked his cheek and brushed away a tear. "We'll get it out somehow."

He nodded and sat there for a bit. Then he said, "I'm sorry, Gin, I'm being terribly selfish. How are you feeling in all this?"

I tried smiling behind all my cares. "I'm still worried about Dad. Just be here with me. You make me feel safe."

I snuggled up against him on the cream-colored sofa we were on and he held me close, gently playing with my hair. "You can close your eyes, Gin. I'll wake you if anything changes."

I smiled and did as he asked. It took a long time before I could calm down but I never felt Harry let go.

The next thing I knew, the sun was waking me up as it poured through the window onto my face. I turned and stretched before realizing my head was nestled in Harry's lap. Suddenly I sat up, causing my eyes to lock with Fleur's who was smiling sweetly at me. Her blond hair shimmered in the light and looked perfect, despite everything.

"Your brotherz are on ze other side of the room. I told Beel I would keep an eye on you two. Your papa, he eez starting to wake up."

"Great!" I reached over and hugged her. "Can I see him?"

"Ze healers don't want to overwhelm him with all of the Weasleyz. Your muzzer will let us know. He's her husband, after all."

I heard a neck crack behind me, letting me know Harry was up. "Good morning, Harry," Fleur said.

"Hey. Did I hear your dad's almost up?"

"Yeah!" I exclaimed. Harry found his glasses and put them on. "Sorry if you slept wrong."

"Still more comfortable then what I got my first twelve years before he saved me. I'm just glad your dad will be ok." I turned around and said good morning in a non-verbal manner. He paused and then was suddenly tripping over his words. "I, err… need to find the loo."

He walked away with two girls laughing at him. "Merlin, I love him so much," I said.

Fleur smiled and then put a finger to her mouth, motioning for me to quiet down. "We are going to wait a few days, probably until after Christmas. Between your dad and ze party for Remus and Tonks… but I want you to know... " She lowered her voice even further. "Beel proposed two days ago. I said yes. Sorry, zis is not a good time."

Wow. "No, that is fine. I'm never going to complain about hearing happy news after do much bad… So we're going to be family?"

"Probably this summer. We haven't set a date or gotten a ring yet."

"Congratulations! Let me welcome you to the family." I paused and then said, "I've never had a sister before."

She smiled. "I would be honoured. You can tell Harry, but please keep the secret for now."

"Of course."

After that, I took my turn at the loo. When I got back, Mum had just appeared. Everyone rushed to greet her and she said, "Goodness! Calm down." She smiled and then added, "He's up and the mediwitch said he can take visitors as long as we don't get him too excited. So everyone use a calm, quiet voice." That was a relative term for us.

We all slowly walked towards Dad's room. The halls were eggshell white and had a few portraits of famous healers. Sometimes they offered advice when the current staff was dealing with a rare, seldom-seen illness.

Dad was lying in bed, propped up by a few pillows. He was still awfully pale, but he at least looked alert. I saw the biggest smile on his face as we walked in. "Good morning kids, Fleur, Sirius."

"'Morning," we all said.

"I don't want anyone to worry about me. I have a few bite wounds that are having difficulty closing, but I'm fine, everything considered."

"How are you feeling, really?" Bill asked.

"Oh, a bit like a… lorey I think they are called, hit me and then ran me over. Twice. But I've got some potions in me so I'll be right as rain soon." His posture betrayed the brave face he had on.

"Gringotts said I could start my holidays early, so I'll be home to help out," Bill said.

"Thanks. I hope to be out by Christmas, but you know how healers can be. All of you watch out for each other and help out Molly. We're still planning on having a reception for Remus and Tonks on Boxing Day." His eyes fluttered a bit and then he said, "I think some of those portions are sleep-inducing, so I should get some rest. You should be able to head home."

We all left. Sirius called over Mum, Dad, Percy, and Bill. Fleur lingered behind with Bill. The rest of us went back the waiting area.

Ron found a pastry that the hospital's elves must have brought and took a bite. He suddenly had a panicked look. "Bloody hell! Hermione's probably wondering where we went!"

I laughed. "Dumbledore or Professor McGonagall probably told her."

Harry said, "We should let her know too though." He whipped out his wand after double-checking for adults. "I've been wanting to try this…" He looked at me deeply, grinned, and conjured his patronus.

Looking at it, he said, "Hermione, we had an emergency but we're all ok. Someone will be by to see about coming over." He flicked his wand and a six-pointed stag galloped off and disappeared. "I didn't want to go into details. I can't control who is around when the message is delivered."

My brothers were all impressed. "That's still past NEWT level!" George said.

The adults reappeared. Sirius said,"I'm sure I just didn't see a stag patronus." Harry grinned as he was winked at him.

Sirius then gathered all of us around. "I didn't want to upset your dad, but I'm not sure how safe our houses are. Bellatrix took his portkey bracelet. We're not sure if that means she or Voldy could try to get through the Fidelius charms or not as he was the Secret-Keeper. Dumbledore's not sure either, not that I'd do anything on his say-so anyway."

Mum was still upset about that than anything else. "What are we to do?" she asked.

Sirius said, "Dobby and Winky spent all night packing up the Burrow while Kreacher and I swept over Grimmauld Place, especially with the Order being headquartered there. Bellatrix has been to Grimmauld Place before so that combined with the bracelet may be enough to get through. Lupin and Tonks should be safe but they don't have the room."

There was quiet as we all tried to think of what to do. Not being able to go home… the Burrow was just a building but all those memories… it was part of the family. It felt like something was missing. I looked around and I knew the rest of the family felt the same.

Finally, Harry said something. "Sirius, I have that country house outside York."

Molly said, "Harry, you don't have to do that."

"I want to. The fields aren't being worked now of course and I can have them lie fallow for the next season."

Sirius smiled. "I've been to the area. James and I visited it once, interviewing new renters. Quiet area, seemed like a big enough house. The last magical family to live there was your dad's grandmother's, so should be safe."

He stopped and then said. "I chucked the last renters out over a year ago. Their lease expired and they had stopped paying rent. Dumbledore didn't know or didn't care to keep an eye on Harry's property. May be a bit musty, but nothing we can't fix."

Mum was still a little worried. Bill said, "Fleur and I can go check it out with Sirius first, Mum. Make sure it's safe."

Bill was staring at Harry, contemplating. "Harry, you should come too. You'll be of age in less than two years and with how powerful you are, the wards may consider you close to emancipated and want to key to you instead of Sirius. They're finicky things and we want them as strong as we can get them."

Harry nodded. I got up to go with him, but Mum said, "You stay here, Ginny." I was going to argue with her, but she had been through enough. Instead, I hugged Harry and gave him a quick kiss, which was more pleasant anyway.

More unpleasantness was to follow though. As soon as they left, Percy let out a scoffing cough. I glared at him. "What?!"

"I'm just glad Mother is finally reeling you in. Harry waltzes in here and acts like he's saving the day when it's his fault Dad was here for starters."

"Harry didn't ask Dad to be pulling all those guard duties, Dumbledore did."

"But he only did them because it had to do with Harry."

I looked to Mum for some help, but she was too shocked to speak. Ron and the twins had inconveniently disappeared. "And if it was, so what?" I yelled as I stood up, inches from him.

"Dad almost got himself killed for that… orphan when he already has enough of a family who needs him. Not that you care."

I bit on my tongue. "What?"

"You want me to spell it out? If Dad has any sense, he'll turn him out instead of letting you sleep in a house he owns. Before his precious daughter turns into a galleon-grubbing slag."

That last word hung in the air. He looked like he wanted it back, but I was too far gone. I reached for my wand as he stepped back and I got off a few mild stinging hexes that he blocked. I cocked my fist and was going to get into something more serious but Mum grabbed my hand.

I fought against her for a moment, but then she said, "Please don't, Ginny. Not here." She looked at my brother with a disappointed face. "Percy, you know none of that is true, you're just angry and worried right now. You need to apologise to your sister." Like that would have fixed things.

Didn't matter. He shook his head. "I'm done with this war Harry's brought us into. Ginny doesn't remember losing anyone. I remember how you were when your brothers died. Dad was almost next. Delores reminded me that we're pure-blood. They'll leave us alone if we keep our noses clean. That's what most of the ministry that's still alive does."

"What about Harry?"

"Better him than all of us. He's a niffler for trouble. I'm not going anywhere near him or anything he thinks he owns," he said glaring at me.

I socked him square in the jaw and then ran to the loo before anything could see me cry.

I must have stayed there longer than I realized. I heard a knocking, not a pounding. The stress of everything has finally gotten to me. I unlocked the door and opened it. "Gin?" I heard a quiet voice.

I grabbed onto Harry like I was never letting go. "Ron told me what happened. The twins are both furious. They were going to go after Percy but your mum finally talked them down… yelled them down, really. I'm sorry you had to go through that. Through all this. I hate this is all happening."

I took a deep breath. "Other people have thought what he said." But he was my brother, which was different. "And said it. You're you and I'm just me." Before he could object, I put my finger to his lips. "And I love you in all of it. Don't think on anything he said."

"I'll try. I love you Gin, for everything you are." He tried to smile. "We should go find everyone else, let them know you're ok. They worry about you more than they let on."

"Not sure I know why," I teased.

"You're a complicated witch… in a good way. I'm really a simple bloke, just with a complicated problem. I am grateful for all the help. I'm sorry your Dad was involved like this."

I squeezed his hand and he took a breath and nodded.

After a minute of walking, I said, "Did everything check out with your house?"

"Oh, yes. Definitely. Looks wonderful if I can say that and not be bragging. I wouldn't mind living there once we're out of school."

He froze and turned red. "Err, I mean…"

I thought we'd save that for another day. "Go on about the house."

"Right, well, it'd be better to just see it. We're not doing the Fidelius charm, Bill thinks it's more trouble than it's worth and it can make us too... complacent? He's putting in several layers of wards that will protect us. Fleur added a few unique charms too."

We found the rest of the family. Sirius said, "All right. Bill recommends to never attach the house to the floo network. So, we will apparate to a spot on the property that Bill opened up. He, Fleur, and I will side-along everyone in turn. I really need to teach you to apparate."

Fred and George spoke up. "We can!"

Bill shook his head. "You've never been there. It's now plotted so you can only find it magically if you know where it is." An interesting protection but effective. I couldn't see a Death Eater using a cab to travel. "Mum, do you want to stay here or come with?"

"Your father insists he's out of the woods so I'll go and take a quick kip for now and come back later." I'm sure she had been up with him all night.

Sirius said, "All right, then. Harry, you first. It's your house, you ought to welcome everyone else there."

"Ok. See you all in a minute."

He took Sirius' hand, winked at me, and then disappeared.


	17. Year 5, Part 5

***Ginny***

It was finally my turn. My oldest brother took my hand and after the feeling of being pulled like a piece of taffy, we were standing in front of a large hedgerow with a clear view of an imposing estate.

The house had a brown-red brick exterior and high-angled roof with mahogany colored shingles. There was a stone walkway leading towards the green front door. The paint was faded and the wood was obviously not new, but it seemed to have aged with some dignity.

Sirius appeared with Ron. He said to me, "Looks nice, but it's also well laid out from a defensive posture. You have to make fifty yards with no cover to get to the front."

Harry was standing at the front door in the robes he'd been wearing since yesterday, but standing there, he looked… confident. Like the lord of the manor. We got closer and he flashed his gorgeous smile. "Please come in, everyone."

The twins showed no hesitation and Ron and the rest followed them. I waited to be last. Harry took my hand and didn't let go.

"I looked at the plans a few times last autumn," Harry said. "Bedrooms are all upstairs. This is the parlour. Sitting room is to the left and dining to the left, with the kitchen out back. We'll have to see what appliances will work with all of us here. There's also a basement that's pretty open. Big enough to host a dance if we ever wanted."

Harry led me and the rest up the spiral staircase to the first floor. "We have three guest rooms and the master on this level and another two guests above us. Mrs. Weasley, you can have the master."

Mum shook her head. "No dear, it's your house, it's proper for you to take it. Are there any other guest rooms with any double sized beds?"

Sirius said, "The last one on the right has a king, actually. The other two have a pair of singles each as well as one upstairs. The other upstairs has a double standard from the looks of it."

Harry thought and then said, "How about the twins take the double upstairs and Ron get the other one."

Fred said, "Forge, I may pinch you in the middle of the night to make sure it's not me."

"I'm the handsome one, Gred. I thought you knew that, being the smart one."

Mum sighed.

Bill added, "I may bunk with Ron a few nights as well if things aren't too mad around here."

Sirius said, "I already have everything of mine moved into the room on the left here, so Ginny and Fleur can take the first on the right."

Harry said, "Ok, then. Dobby?"

The house elf immediately popped into view. "Dobby is here, Harry Potter. Dobby still thinks a galleon is too bigs a Christmas bonus for the extra company but Dobby won't argue again."

"How's lunch coming?'

"Just cooling a bit, sir."

"Please get everyone's things set up in their rooms." He quickly repeated where everyone had been assigned.

My trunk was already there by the time I walked the ten feet to the door. I had the feeling Dobby had gotten to mine first. I started unpacking my things into the chest of drawers and by the time one drawer was finished, Fleur's things had arrived.

Nearly all her things save the unmentionables needed to be hung up. "Can I ask you what wards you added?" I asked, curiously, while she worked.

She finished putting away an evening gown and turned around. "Oh, zat. Well, if you remember from last Christmas, Veelas have a special magic against werewolves."

It was hard to realize that the Yule Ball was only a year ago. It seemed like five. Hell, after the previous twenty-four hours my last class seemed ages ago.

Fleur continued, "I added a protection that defends against aggressive werewolves. It shouldn't affect your professor when he is not transformed, but anyone transformed or one intending harm should find it very difficult to get in. Fenrir is truly a monster and what he'd do to either of us if he could… I've helped some of the victims but not something I want to dwell on."

I nodded, not pressing her on it. "Well, thank you. I know Harry appreciates it all too."

"Well, we'll be family soon enough."

"So… about that. Did your parents say anything, getting engaged so quickly?"

She grinned, "I will have to find out when

we tell them. Bill and I had been talking for a few weeks… spontaneous is nice in books, but in real life… I wouldn't want to have been surprised with a proposal. Since he hasn't met my mamae it didn't seem to make sense for him to ask them."

"I guess that makes sense. They'd have to trust you either way. It's not like you were going to change your answer if they said something."

"Of course not."

While she finished her clothes, I unpacked the few school books I had taken to read over the break and placed them on top of the end table. The furnishing was sparse, which made sense since it hadn't been lived in. We were lucky with the beds. They were stout and must have been included as part of the previous lease arrangements. The place was almost big enough to be a small inn.

I heard a soft rapping on the door. It was Bill. "Dobby has some sandwiches made up if you two are hungry."

I wasn't until he mentioned it. "Sure, sounds good. And congratulations. Fleur told me."

He smiled. "Thanks, Ginny." Bill paused and then walked over and hugged me. "I'm sorry about Percy. Harry is part of this family. And I made sure he knew that too."

Fleur took Bill's hand. "I'm ready for some food."

"Before Ron eats it all?" he joked.

Everyone in the house was gathered around the table except Mum, who was probably taking that well-deserved rest. Afterwards, Harry led me into the parlour. I saw Dad's Wizarding Wireless sitting there. Harry explained as he turned it on. "Sirius and Bill unpacked a few comforts while Dobby and I were making lunch."

We cuddled under a light blanket and listened to some Christmas tunes. I must have been still tired from the previous night, because I found myself being nudged awake by my mum. The sun was already low in the sky by the time I opened my eyes.

"Ginevra dear, can I have a word with you? Privately?"

Harry let go of me and I followed her up to her room. She shut the door and she put a silencing charm on the door. Mum motioned for me to sit on the bed with her but I stood.

"Dear, I want you to know that your father and I love both you and Harry and Percy had no business saying what he did."

"Why do I think that's not the end of this talk?"

She stared me down and I decided to shut it. "I tolerated you falling asleep with Harry after the tournament and last night because those were both extraordinary circumstances. But you're going to make me question that decision if it's leading you to assume we're going to be ok with inappropriate behaviour."

I bit back my tongue and temper to not make things worse. "Is this about appearances or do you not trust us?"

She sighed. "Appearances matter, Ginny. Percy aside, if people think… it'll make things much more difficult for you when you're older."

"Mum, I'm not a little girl, so stop talking around the subject. You're saying that finding a proper husband may be difficult if they think I'm spoilt."

She nodded hesitantly.

"I doubt my brothers had this conversation." If half the things the twins had hinted at in their social life were true...

"Dear, they didn't have to. It's unfair but that's the way it is."

"Even if that were to happen… and it hasn't yet so everyone can calm down and mind their own business… I really don't see the issue since I'll be with Harry now or in a few years."

"I know you think that now, but either of you could decide differently later, no matter what you feel now. Even with the formal courtship. You're young and still innocent when it comes to the ways of men, fortunately."

I had really had enough and decided to tell her. "Mum, we really haven't talked much about what happened my first year." Before she objected, I said, "And it's fine, really. Harry was great when it came to that. Sharing what happened was one of the ways we grew close.

"Tom Riddle, You-Know-Who, shared with me things that an eleven year old shouldn't have had to see. He used seduction many times in school to get what he wanted. Sometimes just flirting, sometimes more. Towards the end, when I was almost completely gone, I saw how he used people in many ways.

"And it scared me and disgusted me. Harry and I would have started dating earlier, but I asked to wait. Partly because I was afraid what romance would be like after what I had seen and done." I had said my piece and Mum hopefully understood.

She had a genuinely worried look on her face, so I added, "Harry made things all right from the start and I trust him completely. With everything. He'd never do something I didn't want. You look at me and you see fourteen years old. You have to know that I'm really much older than that. So is Harry."

I finally sat down next to her and quieted my voice. "We're trusting Harry to save the world. You may as well trust him and me to do the right thing. Which we are planning on doing. But that is really between us. And I guess a bit of you and Dad and Sirius since we are still underage, but it's my life. We haven't broken any rules that you've given us. As far as the rest of the world, they can sod off."

I was tempted to storm off but I knew we were both hurting. Mum finally looked at me and said, "I suppose you're right. I know Harry is right for you. I need to be ready for you to grow up. But I'm always go to be your mum." I hated it when she said that and my eyes probably showed.

She hugged me somewhat awkwardly. "You'll understand someday, dear. Now run along."

I found Harry, who was looking genuinely worried. "It's ok, luv. Mum and I had a misunderstanding but worked it out. We do that sometimes."

He nodded and hugged me. I sighed. "I haven't been properly kissed in days."

"I thought with your dad…"

Ever the gentleman. Too much. "Thank you, but he's not in any immediate danger and I'm saying it's all right. What do you want, love?"

He smiled and wrapped his arms around me. "You." We snogged for several minutes as I allowed myself let go of everything else. I felt his arms run through my hair and then drift a little lower than before for a moment and then he squeezed me one more time. After seeing all those horrid things, he needed a bit of pleasantness.

"I love you," I whispered, barely speaking into his ear. "And thanks for saving my dad."

He smiled and said, "Our dad."

 ***Arthur***

I was counting down the minutes until ten o'clock. The mediwitch told me that if I kept down one more meal I could leave. I wanted to get up more than I was allowed, but they had been limiting that to trips to the loo until yesterday. My eggs and toast didn't seem to have any untoward plans so I was just biding my time, ready to see the new place.

Suddenly, Sirius threw open the door. "Time to spring you, Arthur!"

"You're early."

"And when did a timetable ever matter to me?" he said with a grin.

"I'm not complaining. Molly's father always said any time you left St. Mungo's outside of a box was a good day… He was a bit less flippant after his two sons died," I amended.

Sirius nodded. "It was a peaceful time, between Grindelwald and Voldemort. And then we had a short break most of the world enjoyed until recently."

"At Harry's expense. And yours."

Sirius shrugged. "I have resolved to live as fast as I can and try to catch up with the years I lost. But enough of that now. Tomorrow's Christmas!"

We reached the apparition point. Sirius took my hand and and said, "I think you'll like how Harry's place looks."

I closed my eyes and then opened them, finding myself in the front yard of a gorgeous estate. Harry and Ginny met us at the front door, holding hands. Like they belonged there. I put an arm around each one of them in a three-way hug.

My bride was there a moment later. She smiled and then kissed me, probably holding back a little, unsure of my strength. I would make sure to assure her later.

The house was decorated top to bottom. A deep green tree stood in the living room, covered with our mismatch of hand-made ornaments. I saw some chains of popcorn and a few new decorations. I was soon surrounded by the two young couples in the house.

Bill said, "The kids were getting restless so Fleur suggested decorating. It's a nice enough yard, but the wind's been strong and I didn't think a bunch of warming spells cast outside would be unnoticed."

Harry said, "I'm going to ask Neville about some fast-growing options for trees and hedges to set up a windbreak and pay someone to get them started this spring."

"I'm so happy you're back, Dad," my daughter said with a hug. After a bit, Ginny tugged at Harry's arm. "Let's go finish up, dear. Dad doesn't need us all crowding him."

She said to me, "Sorry, we're in the middle of making a Snitch ornament."

"Sure, whatever you're doing. I should be sitting down for a bit."

Ron and Hermione walked in from one of the back rooms. "I'm not spending another minute in the library during my holidays!" my youngest son exclaimed.

"Oh, fine then. I suppose taking a few hours off will be alright. But OWLs will be here before we know it." They saw me and came over.

"Dad, how are you feeling?"

"A bit knackered, but still getting my strength back."

Hermione asked, "Did the stitches work, Mr. Weasley?"

"No, sorry. It was a good idea, but something about that snake' venom, it dissolved them. I'm just glad we don't have to worry about it anymore."

She nodded. "So, two left… well, other than…" she glanced over at Harry.

"Yes." I supposed we'd need to talk with Dumbledore again, which I wasn't feeling keen on. Sirius had a huge row with him outside my room once and he never got around to see me.

It was a pleasant enough afternoon, though being waited on was something I didn't like. Ginny and I chatted while Harry and Molly cooked supper. Him keeping on her good side was one of his smartest moves.

Afterward pudding, Hermione said she had to go. My heart skipped a beat. "I'll apparate with you, Hermione," I volunteered.

Molly rose up, "Arthur Weasley, you'll do no such thing. Healers' orders, no apparition on your own for another week, let alone taking someone side-along." I put on a pouting frown, mainly in jest. She added, "Honestly, risking your health just for a chance to see a working fellyphone."

Bill said, "I'll take care of it."

"You can come over some other time," Hermione said. "Our house is nothing special."

Ron said, "I'm sure it is special. Maybe towards the end of hols or during summer?"

She smiled. "Sure. And Harry, I'm going to borrow these books if that's ok." She was holding such a large stack, I was expecting her to tip over.

Harry said, "Course, anything you want." I looked over and my daughter was halfway in his lap as they put the finishing touches on their ornament. At the moment, Hermione could have asked for the deed to the estate and he would have given it to her without thinking.

"Where'd all those come from?" I asked.

Hermione said, "Mainly Sirius. The Blacks had some very rare editions, though he left out some of them that were rather dark. He thought Harry's place should have a proper library. A few of them were his parents' too. Remus had a few boxes of their effects. There had been no one else to take them at the time and Harry's horrid relatives would have destroyed them."

Bill said, "Ready, then?" She nodded. "I'm going back to my flat tonight, but I'll be over for breakfast. I'm going to try to knock some sense into Percy one more time, maybe Christmas will put him in a better humour."

I hated being pessimistic about such a thing, but I doubted he'd have success. We were all quite a stubborn lot.

Shortly after midnight, my wand lit up and gently hummed as the time alarm I set expired. Molly rolled over and looked at me. "Dear, don't you think this is unnecessary? Ginny was the last one and she hasn't believed in years."

I whispered, "It's the fun of it. And who knows? She also had daydreams about the Boy Who Lived and looked how those turned out," I joked.

"If you insist. I'll help. It wouldn't do for Father Christmas to faint halfway down the stairs."

I cast a silencing charm since I heard whispers coming from Ginny and Fleur's room. We carefully made our way downstairs and I started to place out the presents in everyone's stockings. Molly's jumper count had steadily increased over the last few years with Harry and now Fleur. She had sent a care parcel with that and some goodies to Charlie since he wasn't able to be present. We topped the stockings off with a handful of snacks and treat for each of them as well.

"All done, Molly-wobbles," I said. After she tidied up a little — Ron and the twins had left the wrappings of some snacks out after we had gone to bed — we headed back upstairs. "You know, I'm all woken up now…"

"You're supposed to be taking it easy, Arthur."

"Don't worry, I will," I said cheekily. I made sure to strengthen the silencing charm.

The next morning, Ron was the first one up. The only day of the year that happened. We all took turns tearing into our presents. Without the Hogsmeade trips, the kids were reduced to owl ordering. They seemed to eschew that for nontraditional items.

The twins gave everyone assortments of their own products. Molly wasn't terribly happy but limited her objections. "Just don't use them during class or to disrupt studies."

I received some muggle 'magic tricks'. It was ingenious, both simple and complicated mechanisms that looked like disillusionment and transfiguration spells had been performed. So wonderful.

Harry looked a little embarrassed by his present to Ginny, but she opened it anyway. "A set of Quidditch hoops!" she exclaimed.

"They were to help you practice since it's been cancelled the last two years," he said. "I ordered them in November… they're spelled to shrink for packing. I suppose you can't use them here until it's safer." He looked at me and Sirius and we had to confirm that thought.

"It's ok, Harry. We'll figure something out. And someday we won't have to worry."

He smiled. Ron added, "I can help out whenever you practice."

"Thanks, dear brother. You could probably use the practice too."

"Yeah… hey!"

"Just kidding!"

Harry said, "I think we will be all a bit off once they finally let us play at school again."

Sirius presented Harry with a hand mirror. It seemed like an odd gift for a fifteen year old boy. "This was your Dad's." This caused Harry to look at it a little more intently. "It's part of a set of two-way mirrors. I have the other one. We'd use them to communicate when one of us escaped detention and the other didn't. It got broken when… anyways, I was able to mend it."

Harry smiled at him. "Thanks. Should come in handy."

"I figured Dumbledore wouldn't want you making portkeying out a habit, so this way we can talk whenever."

Bill, who had came in a few minutes ago, interrupted. "Mum, Dad, sorry but Fleur and I will need to miss dinner."

"Something wrong dear?" Molly asked.

"Oh, no, nothing like that. We have an international portkey for noon to France. It was the only one we could get. We'll be gone through New Year's, so please give our regards to Remus and Tonks." He paused and said, "Fleur wants her family to meet her fiance."

Molly shot up and out her hands to her mouth after a moment. "Really?! Congratulations!"

Everyone was smiling. Ginny and Harry looked a little less surprised than the rest of the kids, but Fleur has been sharing a room with Ginny. Fleur smiled and said, "Thank you. Bill proposed last week. We were going to wait but couldn't. And I want him to see my mamae and Gabrielle."

I asked, "Do you have a date in mind?"

Bill said, "Not quite, we'll see what Fleur's family thinks. And there's a lot of other circumstances, so we may need to be flexible. Maybe summer?"

Fleur nodded. "Oui, not any later."

I saw Molly was straining not to say more. Bill excused himself to get Fleur's bags and then they gave a quick goodbye and headed for the Ministry to leave for Paris.

Everyone had a bit of a lie in on Boxing Day. Sirius had somehow won the argument with Molly over arrangements regarding the belated reception for Remus and Tonks. The house elves at Hogwarts were quite bored during the holiday break and ecstatically agreed to make up the feast at the school and then Dobby and Winky, who had been guided to the house already, would bring it in.

Around eleven, Dobby came in with the first tray of appetizers. After carefully placing it on the table, he found Harry. "Harry Potter, sir… Happy Christmas. Dobby made sir a scarf for a present."

The scarf looked as if it has been made by someone who had heard of the concept but never saw the implementation. It was about twice the width it needed to be and was a mixture of lime green, crimson, gold, and bright pink. "Uh, thanks, Dobby," he said politely. "Can you wait one minute?"

Dobby nodded and stood still, squirming a little. Harry went up the stairs and then came back a minute later. "I have a pair of socks for you."

"Socks! Dobby loves socks and Dobby would never think he would be worthy to wear socks that Harry Potter has worn."

Ginny smirked. "I know the feeling Dobby, sometimes I get to wear one of his shirts. Very comfortable."

Harry was a few shades of red at this point. Dobby ended his embarrassment by suddenly saying, "Dobby must go now for the second plate!" And with that, he again disappeared.

Ron said, "Blimey, how much food are they making?"

Fred said, "More than enough, looks like."

"Well, we did cut the guest list somewhat since having to move," George added.

Hermione said, "Too much waste." Sirius has brought her a few minutes earlier, before he went out to get the guests of honor. "And the house elves should be enjoying their holiday."

Ginny argued with her. "They were practically begging for the chance to not be bored. Dobby and Winky and the others are happy helping." House elf treatment had been a point of contention between them.

Finally, Sirius arrived with the newlyweds as well as the bride's parents Ted and Andromeda Tonks. Andromeda was a semi-retired healer and a cousin a few times removed from Sirius. She looked too much like a mix of her sisters Narcissa and Bellatrix, but I didn't want to hold that against her. Ted was a muggleborn. Both of them tended to avoid too much drama.

After the the third or fifth attempt, I was able to get everyone gathered in the main dining room. Sirius was the best man of course so he began.

"Friends and family… well, thanks for coming. Remus and Tonks deserve a much grander spectacle then what we could whip up here, but he was always the less showy of the Marauders. My cousin Nymph…"

"Watch it!" the bride growled.

"Dora, then, for anyone that doesn't want to refer to her by her maiden name, has always brought enough spectacle to any event she wanted to regardless. We could have had a lot of fun in school if you had been in our year.

"But we don't get to pick when we're born and so she missed out on Remus the lad in school. The stories I could tell if Molly wouldn't gut me for giving her passel too many ideas." He smiled and winked at Harry.

"So, here's to the bride and groom. You may not get to choose what curse afflicts you, you may not get to choose your relatives, but you can choose who you love. And I think both of you made the best choices."

Sirius raised his a mug of butterbeer and said, "To the bride and groom!"

We all drank to that toast.

Remus stood up and then said, "Thank you Sirius. You and James were friends I could never have thought I'd have with my own special difficulties. And Dora, you believed in us long after I gave up on finding love. I can't help think of those who couldn't attend, due to the choices of others or their own. One lesson that required many years for me to learn was that when you have real love, of any form, never forsake it."

With that, Tonks stood up and they kissed. She added, "And Harry, thanks for hosting and keeping us all on our toes. There's more than enough to feed a herd of hippogriffs, so let's eat!"

After the initial conversations over all the food, not half of which was eaten, I made my way over to Ted. I never missed a chance to talk to a muggleborn. Hopefully one of them would one day give me a straight answer on rubber ducks.

I did however keep an eye on the twins. Sirius had brought along a few bottles that weren't butterbeer that they didn't need to be getting into. Sirius and them were comparing notes on hijinks from school. "And don't let his manner fool you," he said "Remus thought up or enabled half of 'em."

Remus smiled, "Well, I don't think anyone would believe you came up with the charms for the Map on your own."

Tonks broke in. "It is the quiet ones you have to look out for," she said with a swig of firewhiskey. Her hair turned a bright orange as it burned its way down.

Speaking of which, I had lost track of the youngest four. I stood up as inconspicuous as possible and looked around. My best guess for Ron and Hermione was correct. She was reading a book on the library and Ron was playing at reading a magazine while he read her.

Ginny and Harry weren't on the ground or first floor. Second floor was empty too. I heard muffled sounds behind the door leading to the rooftop porch.

I cracked it open and saw Harry leaning against the guard rail and my daughter's arm around his back. I thought for a moment about letting them be, but the tenseness in the air told me otherwise. "We're missing you two down below. Everything fine?"

Ginny said, "Just getting some air, Dad."

"Sure. I think your mum wants you though. I'd like to talk to Harry for a few moments."

She hesitated but then said, "All right."

Ginny gave him a quick squeeze on the back and then left.

I stood next to Harry for what seemed like minutes, just staring into the horizon as the sun set.

Finally he said, "Dad would've wanted to see Professor Lupin married. He did so much trying to help him feel… normal." He paused and then said, "I miss them. Not that I ever really knew them."

"It's ok to miss them. The holidays can be rough that way."

"Please don't think I'm ungrateful."

"Harry, I'd never think that. If anything, I should be grateful to you. You just saved my life and brought us to your home."

"You did all that first. Look what it got you."

I sighed. "You know Molly had two brothers that died in the first round of this bloody war."

He nodded. "I've heard a bit about it."

"One thing my kids don't know… they were going to be the twins' godfathers. We were going to surprise them after the birth, but they never heard. It tore up Molly and me.

"Harry, I hope that we all make it through this. But then when that maniac was chasing me through the ministry with a snake, more than anything, I was worried what my death was going to do to my family. Including you.'

I stopped and looked him in the face. "Life is too short to live it feeling guilty. You've had more than a lifetime's worth of loss. Never feel bad for how much we all love you, no matter what happens."

He looked back at me. "Some more than others," I added and he smiled. "Molly told me about a talk she had with my daughter. I assume Ginny told you about it." He nodded so I was glad I didn't have to get into that.

"Just in case… just in case I don't get the chance to say this at a better time..." Merlin, this was hard.

"If or when, more likely, you ask Ginny to spend her life with you... if you can't ask me, for whatever reason, know that you have my blessing. I just wanted you to never have any reason to doubt. Just in case something happens."

Harry said, "Thank you. I've been trying to do right by her."

"I know. And you are," I said. "Shall we head back down? Sirius was probably about to start singing."

"That's probably someone's boggart," he joked.

We walked downstairs. Harry's arm found Ginny's waist as Sirius was giving one last toast. "To Remus and Dora! May your life always be rich and full of hope and love."


	18. Year 5, Part 6

***Arthur***

We were all a little more emotional dropping off the children King's Cross at the end of break. Though when being completely honest, it was getting harder to think of them as kids anymore, even in my own thoughts.

Being prefects, Ron and Hermione insisted on hurrying onto the train to keep an eye on the other students. Plus the twins were already on and Hermione had made it her mission to keep them in line.

I gave my daughter an especially long hug while Harry waited patiently by. "Take care," I told her.

She nodded and smiled. "You too." I glanced at Harry while she let go of me and took his hand. He nodded in understanding.

I also was medically released to resume my full normal duties at the Ministry as well. I had been away from work for so long, it was hard to go back. My bed in the guest room at Harry's was rather comfortable, even if it wasn't the Burrow. I missed our house. It was almost an eleventh member of the family.

Finally arriving, I took the first lift available. I wanted to stay as far away from the sublevels as possible. I could even think of those halls without being anxious.

I settled down to my desk and got comfortable. The stack of parchment in my inbox was daunting, so I dove in. I had made a noticeable dent by lunch, but not nearly as much as I had hoped. I heard back from the knock at the door and Sirius poked in his head.

"Have a minute?"

"Well, I need the break whether I do or not. Take a seat."

He smiled and plopped down, taking an enormous bite of an apple. "Sorry, I'm famished. Had to skip brunch."

"It's fine."

"Well, someone did break into the Burrow over the hols. A few dressers were turned out, a few glasses broken that I repaired. They must have figured you had left because it didn't seem there was a lot of urgency."

"Well, that's a small bit of luck. I'll be looking forward to going back when it's safe," I said. Unfortunately, that was an indefinite wait now.

"The clock wasn't touched so Bill moved it and set it up in the main dining room at Potter Manor. He figured Molly would appreciate it. It's got her marked at home and everyone else where they should be so it seems to be working fine."

He quickly glanced about, making sure the door was closed and lowered his voice. "I talked to one of the Unspeakables. There were thirty-one prophecies missing after the attack. But they only found enough broken glass for twenty-nine."

I breathed out. "That's a big coincidence."

"Yes, too big. Old Voldy probably popped in during the confusion afterwards and grabbed the two about him and Harry."

"So he knows."

"Unfortunately, stupidity is not his weakness. He knows he's lost two anchors already. He won't be aiming to kill Harry now, he'll want to keep him alive… barely... as insurance."

"Dumbledore knows?"

"I'm telling him next. He will redouble security, but not much else he can do without giving too much away. Do we tell the kids?"

I thought about it. "I'm not sure it'll do anything but cause them to be more anxious. Let's let it be, at least for now." I warmed my tea and then took a sip. "Any other pleasant bits of news?"

"The Unspeakables are missing a book about deep magic in this building. You don't remember…"

"Yes, now that you mention it. Bellatrix grabbed a book."

"Their ultimate objective has always been control of the Ministry. They're going to realize occupying it will give them some strategic advantages. The ability to make Taboos, control the Trace, some other items. The book explained some of it, but much of the knowledge is locked to the actual building and the soul of the current minister. Two halves of a key."

"So Minister Bones is all the more important."

"Yes, as could her husband be if she were married and completely bonded. The knowledge could be forcibly removed on death if done correctly, but thankfully the rat and Lucius were more concerned with getting the resurrection correct when they killed Fudge. Small blessing."

He shrugged and got up. "Harry said feel free to put up a shed in the back if you want."

I chuckled. "Probably too busy to work on the bike for a while. Plus I'm pretty knackered end of the day still."

"All right, old man," he joked. "See you later."

Bill and Fleur made it to Potter Manor right as we start sitting for supper. Molly had spent all day working on a roast to greet them after their trip to France. She had fretted about his eating while in France, that he wouldn't get anything hearty. Or he would be nervous around his future in-laws. So my wife vowed to stuff our oldest to the gills.

"Sorry, lots to make up, our portkey yesterday was delayed until this morning."

"Yes, that's what they told me last night before I left work. We were glad there wasn't anything more serious going on." Fleur was still staying with us but Bill felt confident in his ability to ward his flat. I imagined he would be here spending most of his waking time with his fiancee, of course.

Bill asked, "Has Percy…" and then saw Molly's reaction, so he lowered his voice, "he's still not said anything..."

I shook my head. "No, he hasn't. I avoided the mailroom today and he didn't find his way to my office." I had heard of his outburst regarding Ginny from Molly and the twins. No one had talked about it since.

"The stuck-up prig. I'm sorry Mum, but he is. He was the one making everyone feel embarrassed and if he really felt trying to keep her and Harry apart was best for her, saying that would have had the exact opposite effect anyways."

Fleur cut in. "I hope he will apologize. Ginny was hurt and the family needs to be strong with everything…" she trailed off. "I am sorry, it's not my place."

I disagreed. "Fleur, you're part of this family now so it very much is your place. You are right, but I don't see a path right now. He'll have to find his own way for some time I'm afraid."

My bride interrupted. "Let's talk about something else. How was your family?"

"It was all good, by the end. Mamae and Gabrielle, Bill charmed them very quickly."

"Her dad took a little longer," Bill half-joked. "I think it must be a thing that you promise to do when you become the father of a girl, have to put the boyfriend through the ringer."

I played along. "Yes, it's part of the pledge we say at all the Old Dad's Club meetings. You'll feel the same way someday, Bill. Especially if you have a girl that's anywhere near as smart and pretty as her mother."

My little girl had found one of the few loopholes. I found it hard-pressed to ask Harry to prove himself after personally saving her life and mine.

Fleur smiled and said, "You are too kind, Arthur."

"In the end, they gave us their blessing. I think they were a bit sad that she will be living in Britain permanently, but it's not too difficult to visit."

"Just not around the corner like Mamae would like. A bit of distance is not always bad for newlyweds though, no?"

Bill grinned and blushed a little. Probably best at that moment neither Molly nor I were legilimens.

 ***Ginny***

I was poking at my eggs, not really feeling very hungry. Five terms of school left. It seemed so short but it also felt like an eternity. Half of me was so impatient to be an adult and the other half wanted to have a few years' of being a normal teenager. But, I had traded that already for the young man that kept stealing glances.

"Everything all right, Gin?"

"Yeah. Just a little melancholy."

A little second-year girl politely coughed. A Hufflepuff, didn't know his name. Harry looked at her and smiled. It was a good time there were no butter dishes around. "Um… Professor Sprout asked me to give this to you."

"Thanks," he said. She grinned and ran off back to her own table. He read the note. "Hagrid is at his hut but not feeling up to teaching." That explained Professor Grubbly-Plank being at breakfast. We hadn't bad our Magical Creatures class yet, that was last period today.

Harry continued. "I'm going to stop by after class, he's probably lonely. Do you want to come?"

"Of course." I didn't have the special relationship with him that Harry did, but he has been so forgiving of me, I could help but be friendly.

Ron and Hermione had agreed to as well, so we all found our way to his hut after class. I had put on a stocking cap Mum had knitted me a few years ago since the wind was fiercely whipping around. It wasn't snowing but I could see a number of flakes in the air, picked up off the ground.

Harry knocked on the door. There was no answer but it wasn't locked so he slowly peeked in. "Hagrid?" he asked softly and then motioned for the rest of us to come in.

Our teacher was in a almost scary state. He was seated in his chair with his right leg propped up on a stool. There was a bandage wrapped around his left face and on his right arm. "Harry!" he said. "Glad to see you and yer friends."

He was so casual it was distracting. "Uh, good to see you too, Hagrid. You look like you should visit Madam Pomfrey."

"She didn't send you lot down being did she? I told her I'd be alright."

Harry sat next to him. "No, nothing like that."

Hermione added, "But you should see someone." Harry glared back and she quieted.

He then asked, "We just missed you and were told you were here. Can you tell is where you were last term?"

"I'm not quite sure if I should, but seein' how it was a total failure, I suppose it wouldn't hurt." He looked around. "Dumbledore was worried tha' You-Know-Who is trying to make contact with diff'rent creatures - Remus has been tryin' to talk to some of the werewolves. He sent me to try to make contact with the giants."

Hermione looked him over. "You're a half-giant, aren't you? I always thought it was some childhood accident with skele-gro, but…"

Ron interrupted her. "Hermione, that's really rude, Hagrid couldn't… they're…"

Giants had almost an even worse reputation than werewolves.

Hagrid shook his head. "It's true, lass. Me mum was a giantess." He looked more than a little shy.

Hermione insisted, "You know we don't care about that."

I said, "You're still the same person. You've done nothing to be ashamed of."

He sighed. "Thanks, I knew you lot would feel that way. Others don't." He paused and then told us what happened.

"You-Know-Who used giants last time to destroy muggle buildings and bridges. Most of the time the poor folk thought it was a hurricane or somethin'. I visited me mum's tribe to sort of test the waters.

"I took my time getting there. Did not want to be tracked and they are in a better mood for talking in the winter.

"It's long work. If ya go too fast, the Gurg, their chief, will kill you, soon as look at you. I'd bring them a gift every few days, building trust. After a month, they seemed ready ta listen."

I heard a tea kettle whistle. "Hagrid, want me to get that?"

He nodded. "And help yerself if you want a cuppa." No one else volunteered so I poured a small one for myself so he wasn't drinking alone.

After he was finished, he said, "A Death Eater showed soon afters. Not sure which one, but they promised all the mayhem they could stand and a free hand here in the Forbidden Forest. I couldnae compete with that.

An enormous tear went down his cheek. "I tried talkin' to me mum and her son. My brother. Hope they would at least help. But we musta been seen…" He stopped and bowed his head, openly weeping.

Harry tried putting his hand on his shoulder. Hagrid grasped it, a little too tightly and my boyfriend grimaced but didn't speak. Hagrid finally did.

"They were both killed. By their own tribe. The Death Eater put em up to it. After that, they started on me but I had an emergency portkey from Dumbledore so I got out. I had to leave them behind."

We all stood there, quietly wondering what to say. Harry finally broke the silence. "We're really sorry, Hagrid. If you need anything from us…"

He nodded, but then drew himself up. "Thanks. Now you four better get inside the castle before you miss supper. It's also getting dark and you four especially need to be careful."

We said our goodbyes and then went inside. It was a quiet evening spent studying and thinking.

Two weeks later, a small village outside Glasgow had several houses destroyed, all inhabitants died. It was reported as a freak storm with no warning.

Harry started Defense Association meetings for the term first week in February. He wanted to start sooner, but Ron convinced him people wouldn't show right away, needing some time to get used to being in school after the long holiday break.

He seemed determined to make up for the lost time. "Dean!" he yelled during target practice. "Aim is important but you need speed too! Seamus! Same thing in reverse!"

I had taken Ron with me to help drill the second and third years. Some of the older kids saw me and my height and petite frame and didn't think I needed to be listened to. I proved them wrong in one-on-ones, but I didn't feel like arguing today. Plus, Ron and Hermione were having an off day.

"Now, you probably won't have the magical strength to fight an adult yet. Nothing personal, but your body's not just ready. So best thing to do is put up a shield and run as soon as you can."

Ron added, "It's not how loud you yell, it's your concentration that's key. Hard to do in a fight, so we are going to keep practicing."

We gave then a second to get their shields up before starting to push through it. I started with tickling charms at first, but a smart-arsed boy had a grin on his face and wasn't paying attention. I got his focus back with a stinging hex that immediately broke through.

After I saw a few red marks on his face, I cancelled the spell. He stopped grinning after that. I could have broken through again, but his shield was stronger and I didn't want to crush his spirit.

Hermione was the designated clockwatcher and she called the lesson at six sharp.

Harry gathered everyone around. "Good work, all. If you noticed, we will be getting more serious. We will try to be available three times a week."

"What about OWLs?" Cho from Ravenclaw asked.

Harry looked at her. "If you skip to study, that's your choice. I'll be here. I'll retake my OWLs after Voldemort is dead if need be."

The next morning, Harry looked a little peaky. "Everything all right, luv?" I asked while taking his hand as we all walked down to breakfast.

"I'm fine… I s'pose a little tired." He was learning. "Nightmares."

"Oh… I'm sorry."

Hermione asked, "Anything to worry about?"

He shrugged. "Probably, but I didn't get anything specific. I talked to Sirius about it and a few other things. I missed something. I'm getting practice but not learning anything new myself."

"He have any ideas?" I asked.

"Yeah, Sirius wants me to start extra training. You three too, if you want. It'll mean being up and about by five thirty."

"So probably need to get to cut out a few things in the evening," I said.

Ron smiled, "I have some suggestions about that…"

"Don't want to hear it, Ron. I'll put snogging on my timetable if needed. But I'm going to be in the thick of things whether I like or not." Harry squeezed my hand.

Hermione didn't appreciate the banter. "I'll have to see." She looked at me for an argument, which I didn't give her.

Harry said, "We all have our own parts. We know you'll do what you need to."

All four of us ended up showing the next morning at the Room of Requirement. We waited a minute and around the corner came Professor Lupin.

Ron was the first to talk. "Wasn't Sirius supposed to be here?"

"We will be taking turns, actually. He was busy and…"

I whipped my wand out and was glad that Harry did the same. "What's my patronus?" I demanded.

"A doe. That seemed rather friendly with Harry's stag as I recall."

We stowed our wands. Hermione asked a little sadly, "That was a test wasn't it?"

He nodded. "Certainly. You always need to be on your guard. Even in Hogwarts." Ron looked disappointed in himself, but then Remus added, "That was just one of many lessons. You're all going to fail a few of them."

Harry muttered, "Thanks for the show of confidence."

Remus laughed and then looked at the blank wall. "Now, this room. Something that the Marauders had stumbled on accidentally once or twice, but we never mastered. Would one of you do the honors?"

Harry volunteered while he was walking about to activate the door, Hermione spoke up. "We learned about it from the house elves. People don't give them enough credit or respect."

Ron said, "We're not getting into that right now are we?"

That earned a glare. Harry looked at her as he came back and he opened the newly visible door. "First things first. Once the war is over Hermione, I promise I'll do what I can to help the ones that need it."

She nodded. "I understand. Things will be bad all around until then. But I'm holding you to that Harry."

The room looked like Harry's setup for his DA class. Remus closed his eyes and there were suddenly a few changes. The bunnies looked a bit more fierce and there was less space. And then a track formed around the perimeter. "A lap is an eighth mile," he said. "Give me six laps to warm up."

"Running?!" Ron exclaimed.

"Your body needs to be ready for long fights and the stress of fighting when hurt. I'll have you up to two miles before end of the year. Now… go!"

We all took off. Ron quickly pulled ahead, having the longest stride. But that also meant he tired sooner. Harry caught up to him after one lap and passed him by the second.

I wasn't going to give Harry any reason to think I wasn't prepared next time there was a fight. I'd win the argument, but I didn't want to have it. And I wanted to be ready. Plus, the view from immediately behind him wasn't bad either.

Finally, I came out of the last curve. I saw the flash of a stunner and rolled to the ground. I didn't return fire quick enough and I was frozen on the ground.

Lupin unfroze me after Hermione finished the jog to the same treatment. Harry helped me up while Lupin said, "I don't want you to become paranoid, but you need to be ready at any time. I'm going to be showing you some more advanced spells, but surprise and creativity is key."

And they were determined to make sure we would be ready or die trying some days. Over the next few weeks, Remus actually spent most of his time with the advanced spells and physical exercise while the sheer practice mixed with unexpected situations was up to Sirius.

It all went well for about a month, until a Tuesday in mid-February. I woke up at my now-normal time and put a silencing charm as I got dressed. Hermione wasn't there. I quickly put my hair into a ponytail and went to the common room.

Hermione was madly scribbling. "My Arithmancy essay is due today! I forgot all about it!"

I wasn't sure what to say. We all had been slacking somewhat regarding homework. Between the extra training he was receiving and giving, Harry's grades were falling close to what they were his first couple years, when he was still with his horrid relatives. My extra memories were helping, but I was going to not going to get as many O's this year either. Ron was a bit more conflicted.

I sat next to her. "It'll work out."

She shook her head. "Ginny, I think I'm done. Between training, schoolwork, revising for OWLs, special research... I'm glad for the extra practice, but… we're being taught how to become killers. I know, I know, it's necessary but I'm not sure that I'll be able to. And then I'll just be in the way." Hermione rarely ever cried but she was letting a few tears go.

"It'll work out. If you can get that damned thing out of Harry's head… that's saving his life. More than enough for me."

The boys were there a moment later. Ron saw Hermione's face and asked, "You ok?"

"I have a lot of other work to do. You three go on without me."

Ron took my place next to her. "You look like you could use some company. And I have some catching up to do."

Harry looked at them and me. "All right then. Gin?"

"Let's go, luv."

I was surprised to see a new addition to the tutors - Madam Pomfrey was standing next to Sirius. A tad confusing. I shrugged it off while we started our two mile warm-up.

After that was over and I had caught my breath, Sirius asked, "Where's Ron and Hermione?"

Harry answerer, "They're busy with school work, so not coming today."

I didn't tell him I didn't think they'd be coming back ever. Instead, I asked, "Are you expecting injuries in today's training?"

The school healer said, "To the contrary, we will be learning some emergency medical charms."

Sirius explained. "No matter how good you are, something could happen. A bystander distracting you. A lucky shot. You'll need to be able to patch each other up and get them back into the fight or at least survive until you can get them to safety. You can bleed out in less than a minute if it's the wrong artery."

Pomfrey didn't look happy for the conversation to be turning that way, but she didn't argue the fact. "For that, there is a cauterizing spell. It's painful and will leave a scar, but it's better than the alternative. For situations not quite so drastic, we have spells to clean and conjure temporary dressings." She took out her wand and said, "Let's get started."

We worked over the next hour, first just practicing the incantation, and then on hog carcasses the room provided. Sirius seemed pleased, although the charms were slower than he wanted. "Just need to keep practicing. And I know we've been working all of you hard this last month. Take tomorrow morning off. And I'll trust you to stick to the routine and practice the rest of the week."

Harry said, "You and Remus won't be here rest of the week?"

"He has some stuff to deal with and he'll be too knackered next week, with the full moon. I have some other things to handle, and you need more practice now than anything. You've shown you can do it right. Now you need to work until you can't do it wrong."

Between classes, eating, and catching up on homework, the rest of the day went by quickly. After supper, I was sitting in a secluded corner reading my Transfiguration text with Harry's head in my lap. He was suppose to be revising for Charms, but he had drifted off. I guessed nightmares were waking him more than he told me, but I had stopped pressing him about them.

Then the light on my book went dim. I looked up and saw Ron standing in front of the lantern. I lightly bopped Harry on the nose to wake him. He looked up and smiled.

My brother said, "Ginny, can I talk to you, alone?"

"Uh, sure."

Harry sat up, a bit too quickly. "Whoa… room's spinning."

I kisses him on the cheek. "You should just get to bed."

"Probably. Another early day tomorrow."

I let my eyes gaze at him as he went up the staircase and Ron saw down next to me. "I need your help. I can't talk to Harry because any advice he gives is going to be based on you and I don't really want any more details. Seamus and Dean are just going to brag and the twins would just start giving me the mickey."

"Back up a bit, Ron?*

"Right, sorry… tomorrow's Valentine's and I'm going to talk to Hermione if I don't lose my nerve."

I grinned. "When did you decide this?"

"I've been meaning to for a while. Was thinking about Christmas, but then with Dad… Should I? I don't want to cock anything up… stop grinning, this is hard enough talking to me baby sister."

I sighed. "First, if you want my help, stop calling me that. And you haven't had it any harder than I have. I'm about to get a club for the next girl that I catch staring at Harry's bum."

"Didn't really want to think about that."

"Well, I am… Now about Hermione. She likes you. That's why she gets so pissing mad when you're being a git. If she didn't care, she wouldn't. She's got a wicked memory though so be prepared to do some apologizing. You decide if it's worth it."

He had a frown in his face for a second. "You're right. I'll talk to her during free period after lunch."

"Great! And Ron, Harry's probably going to have a large box of chocolate in his trunk. Tell him I said you could have it, being for a good cause."

"Thanks. I think."

The next morning, Harry and I walked to the Room of Requirement ourselves. He was smiling more than usual. "What is it?" I finally asked.

"Well, I had to rearrange my plans for the day. Ron wanted to spend some time with Hermione alone in here."

"That's great. Just took him a year."

"Yeah, too bad there's just the one room, especially with no Hogsmeade trips."

"There will be plenty more Valentine's, luv."

He kissed me softly on the lips. "I hope so. In the meantime, I thought we could at least have breakfast by ourselves," he said as we stepped inside.

"That sounds nice." I paused for a moment. "We should get some physical exercise in first though."

"You want to still run?" He stopped and looked at the luxurious bed I had imagined up. "Oh."

"Breakfast can wait ten minutes," I said. "I haven't had a proper snog in far too long."

I wrapped my arms around his head and then pulled him down next to me. I cast an alarm spell before I closed my eyes and let him lead.

My alarm went off too quickly and also too slowly in some respects. I gave Harry one more kiss and then we slowly sat up, adjusting clothes and rebuttoning as needed. He looked nervous.

I took his hand. "You didn't do anything I didn't want. I'm glad the alarm went off when it did though."

He seemed at loss for words with a smile. Finally he said, "Agreed. Probably should be a bit more careful next time. You're so… I love you, Gin."

"I love you too. Now, breakfast?"

"Right," he said with a grin. He called Dobby who had two plates of a traditional English breakfast prepared. I was famished. It was too shortly over and as much as I want to stay with him there, we had the day to start.

The day was really awkward for many students. I saw no fewer than three arguments between couples where one of them had decided to blow off the day given the lack of options and the other one hadn't.

Harry made it a point to try to steal little moments of affection, the slight kiss here and there as it just reminded me of the morning and made me want him more.

Ron and Hermione disappeared as expected after supper and the two prefects actually broke curfew. I was impressed. Hermione snuck into our room far after the other girls were asleep.

Once she was in her nightgown, I hopped on her bed and performed a charm to keep our conversation quiet. "How did it go?"

She smiled. "It was… nice. Ronald and I talked a lot. We've both down a good job of sabotaging ourselves in the past and I wanted a few things in the open. He gave me some chocolates, which was sweet. They were your favourite, so I'm guessing he had some help. But it was still sweet."

"I'm glad he's finally coming around."

"Yeah, painfully slowly. And we're going to take things slow. It's different for us than you."

I asked, "I guess that's expected, but what do you mean, exactly?"

"Ronald and I are very different. It's like… where a river meets the sea. There's mixing and we push on each other but they are still separate."

"Also a lot of storms?" I mused.

"Perhaps. You and Harry… it's like brass or bronze."

"Or mud?" I smirked. Would that make me the dirt or the water though?

"Or mud. And to be honest, I'm happy with how we are and hopefully where this is going. And I know you're happy.

Yes, I was.


	19. Year 5, Part 7

***Ginny***

Around March, almost every professor had given up on teaching new material and had gone into full revision mode. They were rated by the number of passing and Outstanding OWLs, so they had an interest in our scores, even if they didn't care personally for us. The one exception was Snape. It was obvious he could fail everyone outside his own house and still retain his position.

"Mr. Potter, you will be worthless in a fight against the Dark Lord unless you learn to control your voice!"

We were supposed to be learning how to wordlessly cast spells. Hermione was the only one who had succeeded but Harry received the brunt of the criticism.

Meanwhile, Neville and Ron had only managed to poke their feathers until they were falling apart.

"Hopeless," he said dismissively. "Miss Weasley, attempt to salvage this period."

I stared at my feather and thought the leviosa charm intensely. It rocked but that was all I could manage.

"You'll get it, Gin."

Snape whipped around. "Potter, concentrate on your own work. You don't deserve…" He trailed off before finishing his sentence.

Suddenly, Harry's feather was aloft, a whole hand above his desk. He grinned at Snape, which didn't help.

"Still shouldn't have taken so long if you would practice instead of leading that foolish fan club. Do I make myself clear?"

He gritted his teeth. "Yes."

"Yes, sir!"

"Just Mr. Potter if you please. Even in the club, I don't make anyone call me sir."

Hermione's eyes bugged out and she clasped her mouth. Ron tried poorly to hide a smirk and I probably had the same look.

Snape glared at him. "Detention, Potter. One week. I've put up with your cheek far too long."

Harry slumped in his seat and the rest of us went back to poking our feathers.

I had to study by myself that night. Harry was with Snape and Hermione and Ron were with each other a few tables down in the library.

She was studying and my brother was skirting the line of how distracting he could be with his attempts at flirting before she shut him down. "Ronald, I'm trying to read. I swear…"

Her outburst earned a glare from Pince. Ron responded in a loud whisper. "You've been doing nothing but read all night."

"We have OWLs coming. You want me to not work on that?"

"I just think we could take a break and… hey, this isn't Arithmancy! What is this!"

"It's Greek. A book on magical relationships. They didn't have a copy in English so I'm having to use a translation spell which requires focus," she explained.

"So you'd rather read a dusty old book that isn't even part of your classwork than have some alone time?"

"With that attitude? Yes."

My brother stormed off and I redirected my eyes so the eavesdropping wasn't immediately obvious. It didn't work of course. Hermione kept glancing my way and then finally left, hopefully to talk to Ron.

It was getting late enough I didn't want to be in the corridors by myself any later, so I went back to the tower. I found the chair that usuar had Harry and me in it and I tried to pass the tomo quickly.

Finally, he was back, not looking happy. I moved to the side to make room for him to sit next to me. He dropped down, more moody than usual. I asked, "What happened?"

"He had a list of detention slips from the seventies that I had to copy. A lot of them were my dad and Sirius outright picking fights and bullying the Slytherins."

"You knew they had been pranksters."

"It went beyond that to just plain mean. I'm not sure what Mum ever saw in him if he was really such a git."

"Harry, people change. Your dad had a lot easier go of it then you did. Took him longer to grow up. Everyone that knew him said he was a good man."

"Maybe. I hope they aren't just sparing my feelings. I just… always wish I knew him. Everyone compares us. We both even fell in love with redheads. Now, if we had been classmates, I don't think I'd even be his friend."

He obviously wasn't listening to me with a lot of attention, so I just cuddled with him for a few minutes. Finally, I suggested, "How about you talk to Sirius tomorrow. Couldn't hurt."

Harry nodded but he still was uneasy with everything. If I had the power, I'd have let him see his parents, just for five minutes. Harry deserved his dad telling him once how proud he was. But no amount of magic would do that and so I would continue to do it myself. We held each other for a few minutes and then we both retired for the night.

The next morning, he seemed a little better as we walked to our training. Thankfully, Sirius was there. Before we got started on our daily two mile warm-up, he told him about the previous night.

Sirius chuckled at what had landed Harry in trouble in the first place. "He shouldn't have given you a week of detention. One night I could see but Snivellus was baiting you. But he's your teacher so not much to be done. Just try to control the temper."

"And about the rest?"

"Well, yes, we were idiots for a lot of our time here. When things started getting more deadly in the war, it got more intense since these were all soon-to-be Death Eaters. But James realized it was time to be a man and that's what your mum needed him to be. People can change if they really want."

He paused. "I wish I had learned patience sooner. Not going after Peter without thinking it through…" There was some guilt in his face, but he pushed it aside. "At any rate, time to start your jog."

The day after Harry's last detention was set aside for career discussions for all fifth-years with their heads of house. I shuddered to think about having Snape.

They assigned slots alphabetically, so I was the second to last one for Gryffindor. Professor McGonagall welcomed me into her office and I sat down in a large chair with cracked leather. "Miss Weasley, this is an informal meeting for us to discuss your plans for the next two years and then afterwards. We try to have this ahead of OWLs so that you can have an idea of what tests you should be focusing on. Have you thought about the future at all?"

I sputtered out a laugh, which she frowned at. "I'm sorry, professor. Yes, I think about the future all the time, but more immediate concerns than academics or a career."

"Yes, I understand. Though I would suggest you do need to keep in mind your personal future, even though you have been neglecting your studies."

I paused and thought about it for awhile. What would I do if I got to pick?

"Well, I'd like to play Quidditch. It's a long shot, I know, especially with being suspended indefinitely here. But that would be fun, at least for a few years. After that, I don't know. Maybe writing?"

"No jobs at the Ministry interest you?"

I thought for maybe half a second. "Not really. I have enough drama in my life. And I've seen enough of the ministry that I'm a bit jaded."

That managed a suppressed smile from her. "Well, all right. I suppose I don't have a lot of course suggestions then. Do you plan on dropping anything? Your grades have taken a bad turn lately, but I think you'll manage to get by on your OWLs based on your past work."

"Divination, because I think the course isn't worth learning. You're either born a seer or you're not. And Defense."

"Defense?" I managed to surprise her.

"Yes, ma'am. The only thing I've learned from Snape is how much he hates the man I love. Harry's taught me so much more and in less time." He also was infinitely easier on the eyes.

"I see."

"Professor… I don't mean to be rude but why is he still a teacher?"

There was an awkward silence. "It's out of my hands, Miss Weasley. Since he's a head of house, he reports directly to the Headmaster. He has reasons that are his own. I do sympathize."

"Thank you."

"Well, unless you have any other questions, you can be excused."

"Yes Professor." I got up and quietly walked out. It was just about supper time so I went straight to the main hall.

Hermione and Harry arrived a few minutes later. Harry sat down with a gentle kiss on my check. "How did you meeting go?"

"A bit awkward." I summed up what happened quickly. "How about all of yours?"

Hermione said, "I have a few ideas about the Ministry, maybe in DMLE, but my blood status might be an issue, depending on who the department head is." I hated that, but doing so didn't make it less true.

"Have you thought of being a private magical solicitor?" I asked.

"Perhaps. That could be personally rewarding, but the clients I would want to help wouldn't be the ones with the big money."

Harry said, "Well, maybe I can help set up a foundation or something. Sirius would probably be agreeable. Merlin knows he hasn't had the best of luck with the law.."

Ron appeared and quickly took a seat. Hermione said, "That seemed fast."

He shrugged. "I was hungry."

She looked scandalized. "This is your future you were supposed to be planning."

He shrugged. "How many people end up at twenty-five where they thought they were going at sixteen?"

Harry headed off the potential for a louder dispute by asking, "What did you say?"

"Well, I know we've talked about being aurors. Not sure if I'm going to qualify though. I thought working in the gaming department at the Ministry might be fun. Get to think up all sorts of challenges for the next Tri-Wizard Cup maybe?"

Harry smiled at that. "Sure thing, mate. I don't think being an auror is what I want. But it's what everyone probably expects of me."

"I think you've already had to do enough of that," I said between bites of roast pork. "What do you want?" He gave me a smile that told me exactly what that was at that moment, which Ron ignored.

Ron nodded. "Though you need to have something to keep busy."

I couldn't help myself but to wink and say, "I'm sure I can think of something."

Ron glared at me. "Don't want to know. And you're too young to be thinking like that."

"You're only a year older than me and you're all going to be of age next year."

Before we could carry that any further, my twin brothers interrupted us. "Hello, fifth-years," Fred started off.

George added, "We thought we'd let you bask in our presence a bit longer. Before you go off studying."

"You're really going to do it, aren't you?" I asked.

"Everything's set up and we agreed at lunch."

"It's not worth our while anymore. And time is Galleons. We thought about getting a bit more entertainment and hilarity this term, but we decided against it. You four don't need any more distractions from your tests. Important things, tests, you know." Fred grinned.

I rolled my eyes. "I'm not sure I want to be around or not when Mum finds out."

Harry murmured. "I don't."

George patted him quite forcefully on the back, causing Harry to almost choke on a roll. "Don't worry, chap. We're going to be heading off any Howlers sent your way.'

Fred added, "Between being the illustrious Harry Potter, our only sister's true love, and everything else, we really can't do anything. Three times pays for all, as they say in Yorkshire."

Harry shook their hands, smiling. "Well, I do my best."

"He certainly does," I added.

Ron wasn't so hungry anymore.

 ***Arthur***

I almost dropped my tan leather briefcase as soon as I stepped out of the floo. I had endured a very long day at work after a short night of sleep after a long meeting at Grimmauld Place. Molly rushed over and gave me a quick peck. "There you are dear. I just put the beef pie in."

"Brilliant. Bill and Fleur back yet?" I asked while taking my seat before my feet took their leave of me.

"No, they wanted to have some time to themselves, poor dears."

After their engagement, we had an unspoken arrangement and Feur stopped looking for a flat of her own. Little point when she and my oldest would be married in a few months. Harry's estate had more wards placed around it, making it safer than anywhere else. It was still a little awkward staying here, but he insisted.

Fleur was taking it in stride, but I had to imagine it was too much time with us old people. Bill and her went out as much as they could safely, not that I could fault them. "I hope they're being careful," I said.

"I believe they are doubling with the Lupins."

"That's good. Two more sets of eyes." I paused. "I got a note at work. Fred and George are going to be here shortly."

Molly sighed in exasperation. "What! Leaving school in the middle of the week?"

"I'm sure they have their reasons."

"We'll see." She went off quietly, ferociously finishing supper. I sat at the table. She didn't seem to be in the mood to talk. I almost felt pity on the parsnips she was pulverizing.

Thankfully, it wasn't a long wait. The twins popped through in a few minutes. They both smiled. "Dad, Mum, nice to see you."

"Definitely."

"Just the four of us?"

"Yes," I said.

Molly quickly set the table and then we all filled our plates. Before a bite was taken, she said, "So, what are you doing outside of school and what does Dumbledore have to say about this?"

Fred looked at George and then he said, "The rest of term is studying for our NEWTs. We don't need them to start our business."

"We've learned all we're going to at Hogwarts and we don't want the pomp of graduation. Plus, we want to be ready when school lets out, should be a lot of sales."

"We found a small spot on Diagon Alley that includes a two bedroom flat and signed the lease this morning. We will be packing first thing tomorrow."

They both looked at us with the hint of a pleading look. The twins, after everything, really did want our approval. All children really did. Molly looked at them and then me. "Arthur?"

I took a breath. "Well, obviously we would have preferred you have finished out your schooling, but if you think your business reasons are more important… it's your choice and your career. We hope that you will be successful."

Molly didn't look like she was happy with my response. I said, "Dear, they're of age and going to do it anyway. We don't need any more fighting in this family."

We ate the meal in silence. The twins got up to get the bread pudding. Molly thanked them and smiled. "I'm sorry, boys, but it's just… I'm not quite ready for everyone to be grown up. Ron is going to be of age within a year and Ginny…"

Fred said, "Ginny and Harry are both more adults than most adults we know, Mum."

"Yes, don't be sad," George added, "it means you've done your job well. We're all growing up faster than normal."

Molly forced a grin, albeit with a few tears. "Being a mum is one of the few jobs where you get punished for doing it well."

I put my arm around her shoulder and the twins joined in the hug.

I hesitated but found myself asking, "Not that I think this, but you didn't get your startup funding from anything… sketchy, did you? Gringott's wouldn't have given you a loan without collateral."

The twins drew back in mock horror. "Course not, Dad. We have a silent partner. Harry tried just giving us what we needed, but we talked him up to calling it an investment, buying a thirty percent stake," Fred explained.

I looked at them. "I shouldn't be surprised, but I am."

George quickly added, "He didn't want his name attached or to get in any difficulty with you or Mum. We keep telling him to stop apologizing for doing something good."

Fred concluded, "Ginny's still working on him. Good thing she's the stubborn one. Thanks for supper, Mum."

"We'll be spending the night if that's ok."

Molly stood up, "Of course, boys. You will always have a place here and come for dinner anytime. I'll make sure you have a good English breakfast tomorrow. Can't have you moving and then starting your first day on an empty stomach."

I was missing my shed that Saturday. Molly had insisted that she had wedding planning to do with Fleur. To his credit, Bill insisted on being more involved than I expected. I had already been through enough of that with my own, so I was amusing myself with my muggle manuals that Harry had bought me.

Sirius burst through the door and changed our plans. "I just got word, there was an attack in Ipswich!"

"The waterfront?" I asked.

"No, a house further inland. Best that we side-apparate."

The younger couple ran into the room. "We're coming too. It's a full moon tonight…" Fleur had helped a few others in attacks like Bill's. Greyback and his pack were getting more bold and restless.

As we hurried outside, I asked, "Remus meeting us?"

"No, between the date and a few other things, he's not in a good place right now."

"K."

We passed the house boundaries so all held on tightly.

I drew out my wand as soon as we arrived, but it was immediately obvious to not be necessary. We were in the garden of a small house, obviously muggle. I saw some… balloons and the half-eaten remains of a cake. On the fence there was a banner - Happy birthday, Trenton.

Not a soul around.

Then I turned back to the house and saw it, down at the ground. Six children in party attire, with smiles still on their faces. All dead.

Two adults, probably the boy's parents, also dead.

Next to a platform, wearing a flashy cape, the corpse of a man in a suit with a top hat.

Bill read a name off a box. "Wendell the Magnificent."

I noticed a black and white stick Wendell was holding. I knelt down and curiously pressed a button on the side and almost jumped as three red flowers burst from the tip.

Sirius was standing over me. He gave me a hand to help me up. "What is it?" he asked.

"Tricks. The muggles call them magic tricks. It's all sleight of hand and gadgets of course," I said with a whisper.

Fleur shouldn't have had to see these things. She was only nineteen, for pity's sake. Not that any of us were really ready.

Bill and Fleur came back from the indoors. He said, "The Death Eaters took them to be mocking our world, I suppose. Snape tipped you off, Sirius?"

"Yes, well, through Dumbledore. We don't really talk directly… it was a spur of the moment attack. Easy target."

"No one inside. We should… we should get going in case anyone double backs.

Fleur asked, "The aurors will be here?"

Sirius shook his head. "They can't be everywhere and it's getting harder to cover everything up. We can't hide this from the muggle authorities. They will have to believe whatever they will."

She nodded. We checked one more time for any signs of life but the only comfort we could take was that it did not seem as if anyone suffered.

 ***Ginny***

The first Friday in May was too bright to be spent in inside. Unfortunately, it was too difficult to ward off a section of the courtyard for our practice. Plus, we needed secrecy.

"Gin, I think we need a break from the early morning sessions."

I squeezed his hand. "Probably. Wouldn't pay for Mum to kill us for failing our OWLs before we're ready to face Tom."

"Especially after the twins…"

"Yeah…"

I grinned. They were just about to open and hopefully business would be good enough to soften any future problems. Not that Harry ever really got in trouble at home.

He said, "I'll let Sirius or Remus know then. We'll break until the end of the term. I think I need some time for everything to settle anyway."

I opened the door and saw Remus and Dora. Harry started to tell them our decision, but the tension was… well, it was obvious something was going on between them. Like we had walked in two minutes after a fight.

Dora finally spoke. "I was going to come by myself but Remus insisted that I not take the walk from the apparition point by myself in my condition."

I grinned. Harry didn't seem to catch on. He was still a bloke after all. But I couldn't really blame him, he probably had never been around anyone... "Congratulations, both of you!" I said.

"You're having a baby?" he asked, finally realizing.

Tonks smiled, "Yes, we are. He or she is supposed to arrive in late October."

"That's great," Harry said.

Remus was looking a little conflicted. "I… thanks. I'm a bit worried, with the war and my condition…"

"Oh," I said quietly, "could the baby be a werewolf?"

Dora said, "No, that's never happened. At most, he may get slightly moody once a month. Happens to the best of us. Or she may eat things a little on the rare side like your brother does now. He's just… worrying. Does that a lot."

Harry had the room make some chairs right before Remus collapsed into one. "I'm sorry, Dora. My life's been hard and painful. I don't want our child to have to go through what I have. Especially if we lose. Anyone not pure is going to be hunted down..."

Perish the thought. "That is not going to happen," I insisted. "We are going to win."

Harry put his arm around him. "Is there anything we can do?"

Remus looked at his wife and she nodded. "If the worst comes about… we'd like you to be his godfather, Harry. Help keep an eye on him or her as they grow up."

I wasn't expecting that.

"But… Sirius, wouldn't he better?"

Dora said, "I think you would have more energy to keep an eye on a little one. And my cousin… could you really see him changing nappies?

Harry laughed, "I guess not."

Remus added, "Plus, Andromeda and Molly will be sure to help. If you need it. Hopefully, none of this will matter."

"Then I'll accept, humbly."

Tonks rubber her hands together noisily. "If that's all settled, you two still have work to do."

That turned out to not be an exaggeration.

"They did what?" Hermione almost yelled that night in the common room

Harry glared at her, "I don't think they heard you in the dungeon."

"Sorry, just surprised. They haven't been married that long."

"Well, Remus isn't getting any younger. And his furry little problem can age him faster - all the wear on the body every four weeks. Or with the war going on. It causes most people to put things on hold - look at the size of our year versus two years later. But some people decide to live life."

I knew which one I was. I added, "We didn't ask if it was planned or anything."

Hermione blushed. "No, I suppose not."

Ron had checked out of the conversation already and was letting Dean and Seamus team up on him in a chess match.

She had the look in her eyes that there were a dozen gears twirling. I snuggled into Harry for a moment but finally said, "What are you thinking?"

"Well, if the Ministry does fall… I could see them trying to take children away from what they would consider undesirables. They probably wouldn't honor any verbal agreement that had Harry involved."

Harry was now paying full attention and dropped the piece of my hair he was playing with. "I need a better guarantee then."

She said, "I think you do, Harry. I can only think of one method that is considered inviolable. An Unbreakable Vow."

"I'll do it," he said without hesitation.

Hermione surprised me by not rejecting the idea. "I wouldn't talk to Remus though. He seems conflicted enough."

I said, "I bet Professor McGonagall could act as the binder."

Hermione cut in. "I'm going to be seventeen in less than six months. And considering how powerful you are, I think we could do it."

Harry said, "Really? I'd hate to bother anyone."

"I think so."

"Ok. Neville is planting in the greenhouse for another hour so no one's in my room."

Hermione packed up her things. I stood up and then gave my hand to Harry. "You're coming?" he asked.

"Of course. I'm not going to let you alone in your room with another woman." I smirked before either of them got too wound up.

After a few flights of stairs, Harry and I were seated on his bed and Hermione was on my brother's, which was conveniently the closest one. She held out her wand and Harry wrapped his hands around it.

Her eyes closed as she concentrated for a moment and then her wand dimly glowed. "Begin."

Harry looked at me and then her. "I swear that if Remus and Nymphadora Tonks are unable to care for their child, I will provide and love their child as my own."

Hermione uttered the closing incantation and then a bright red line swirled around the wand, enveloping Harry, and then disappeared into him. "I do believe that worked," she said.

I gave Harry as sound of a kiss as I could with the present company. "You are so sweet."

"I just wanted to make sure that he knows what it's like to be happy and loved. No one deserves to be an orphan."

Hermione stood up, looking rather pleased with herself. She made it to the door before looking back. "I'm going to interrupt Ron's game in five minutes if you're not down by then."

Prefects.

I made the most out of the five minutes.

Finally, OWLs were over. I had a good feeling about most of the classes I cared about passing. Hermione was another story. "What did you get for number fourteen in Charms?" she asked all of us. "I wasn't quite sure on the timing of the wand movements."

I looked over at Harry who was busy reading the latest print of the Quibbler, which Luna had just gave him. She found an empty seat at our table while he read it. This edition was entirely filled with Luna's notes from Harry's Defense lessons over the past semester.

Ron was doing his best to hold his tongue with his dating Hermione, but he lost the battle. "Hermione, we just finished the tests yesterday. If I can, I'm going to not think about school until August at least."

"Ron, we have to start studying for our NEWTs! Our classes are all going to have required reading and homework over the summer."

"Bloody hell, woman. Fine, at least give me June off."

Luna looked up. "I don't think the timing of the wand movements matter that much, Hermione, as far as the efficacy of the spell. It's most important to have a sharp form, and that's really part of the practical, not the written test." She pointed out something on the paper Harry was reading. "And Ronald, Hermione just thinks she needs to be the best to be good enough for our world. She forgets her friends like her for who she is."

Hermione stared at her, stunned at her naked honesty. "I… why did you say that?"

"It's true. I think we'd all waste a lot of time if we just spoke the truth. I'd rather know what someone really think, even if it hurts, then be friends with a lie."

Ron said, "I'm sorry. Maybe you can come over more this summer so you can keep practicing. I don't want you to get rusty."

She smiled. "Thank you. And we don't have to study all the time."

There was almost a bit of pink to his ears. I added, "Yes, keep him distracted."

Hermione got up. "I need to pack."

Ron said, "Yeah, me too."

I casually waved.

Harry muttered something that sounded suspiciously like, "5 minutes," before turning back to the paper.

"That's great, Luna."

"I'm glad you approve. You don't mind me copying your lessons?"

"Of course not. I wasn't planning on writing a textbook or anything anytime soon."

"Daddy thinks this will be another sell-out. Especially with you supplementing the cost with that advertisement."

On the third page, I saw a half-pager for Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, my brothers' new store. It emphasized a line of defense products as well as their more recreational items.

She folded it up. "If you don't have any corrections, we'll start print as soon as I get home. Now, I need to go find my knickers."

Harry almost spat out his pumpkin juice. "Excuse me?"

"Oh, most of the rest of the girls in my house make a game out of taking my things and hiding them around the castle. It's not very nice but they must need something to amuse themselves. I always make up a list at the beginning of the year with all my possessions. That way I can make sure I don't miss anything."

I gave Harry a quick kiss. "I'll go help Luna."

"Ok, Gin."

I looked back and said with a wink, "If you need help finding your knickers, just let me know."

That time, he did spit out his juice.


	20. Year 6, Part 1

***Arthur***

Percy didn't even look at me as he walked by my office. I didn't know what to do about him. He had to feel embarrassed about Christmas, but now he was even more embarrassed he was still not taking to us. It was an awkward cycle that I couldn't end. My door was always open but I had decided he had to make the first move. He at least owed his sister and Harry an apology. Percy was well past being a child and it wouldn't do to chase after him.

But it was hard. There had not been any Death Eater activity since the birthday party incident. But that had to be temporary. I had a hard time not thinking that any time I saw someone, it might he my last.

My thoughts weren't putting me in a pleasant humour for lunch, so I decided to check on the twins' shop before waiting for the Hogwarts Express. I would have taken the entire day off; Merlin knew I had enough holiday time saved up. But there was always so much to do.

The shop's exterior was so gaudy that passers-by stopped and stared at it for the first few days. Every bright colour one could think of. Clowns and explosions randomly popping out every few minutes. It was definitely my boys' creation.

I didn't want to make a big fuss, so I quietly opened the door. Of course, a loud bell rang out. Not that anyone much noticed. The place was surprisingly rather full, considering it was nearly all adults in Diagon Alley today. Once the kids were home from school, I knew it would be even more packed.

The first aisle had prank items like itching powder, Super Exploding Snap, and joke potions. I turned to the next row and there was a whole line dedicated to skipping class. The last one I checked had some serious items, such as hats that provided a shield against stray curses. Next to them was some muggle trick items. I was tempted to get a deck of cards but then I saw the queue to pay and decided against it. They were going to need to hire more help. Not a bad problem to have.

I ducked out before they could see their old dad was checking up on them and apparated to the platform. Sirius popped in a moment later. He was in a dark robe that spoke to old, confident money. Expensive, but not flashy.

"Arthur… we have a problem." He scanned for onlookers and eavesdroppers and said, "I just got a message from… a friend. She says she wants out. Right now. She promised minimal opposition."

"What about the children…"

"We will be back before they arrive. Our friend thinks she's about to be exposed and wants to activate her primary exit scenario."

I didn't want to get into a fight with even a few Death Eaters today but didn't seem like I had a choice. "I've never been there."

"I have," he said, offering his arm so I could sidealong to Malfoy Manor.

I took it and in a moment we were outside the gated of a majesty and imposing manor. Almost a castle. Much of it made of centuries-old oak, magically preserved from aging.

Sirius started throwing a number of diffindo's and other explosive and incindiery curses. I joined along and soon a blaze was roaring at the main gate.

"That's good enough," he said. "Time to head for the entrance off the master suite."

We hurried along until we ran into spellfire. One cutting curse would have had my left hand off if I hadn't dodged.

Narcissa and Peter Pettigrew were standing, waiting at the black door. She was dressed in a robe that was probably worth more than I made in a month. But her eyes… they were haunted.

Sirius' old schoolmate did not look like he belonged in such a stately location, being in worse shape than he had after being a rat for years on end. He must have been assigned as Dobby's substitute to the Malfoys.

Narcissa fired two bludgeoning curses at me. The first missed and the second broke my shields and I knew I'd have bruises at least. But her focus on me gave Sirius an opening and he stunned her.

Peter turned to face his former friend, but an incarcerous charm was already on its way and soon he was bound. I stunned him for good measure.

Sirius hurried up and revived his cousin. He held out his hand to let her up. "Let's go, not a lot of time."

Narcissa objected. "One moment, if you please!"

Sirius muttered under his breath as she hurried into the burning building. We kept a watchful eye, waiting for at least a few opponents to come. But none did.

Finally, she emerged carrying a large carpetbag. "A few million galleons' worth of jewels, emergency funds. I don't intend to live like a muggle peasant."

Sirius shook his head in frustration. He gave me a bracelet. "Purple jewel for the safehouse. I'm going to stay behind for a minute and deal with a friend."

"What are you going to do?"

He said grimly, "I don't think you want to know."

As soon as we landed, I started reciting the incantations for a number of protective wards.

She nodded and we stood outside the small cottage waiting for Sirius. Narcissa said, "This isn't what I'm used to but you have my thanks. Doubly so if you get my Draco here safely. Mr. Weasley, I hope I didn't hurt you too badly, but I needed it to appear real. In case Pettigrew escaped."

I nodded in understanding if not agreement. Trying to have sympathy for either of them was difficult, especially after the Diary… but given what I knew about her family, I could try to understand how her life had taken her where she was at present.

Sirius suddenly appearing, smelling badly of smoke. "Where was everyone else? Why was Peter the only one there?" he demanded.

Narcissa took a breath and softly said, "There is going to be an attack on the train. In ten minutes. It was my only chance. Get Draco out and I'll tell you everything I know. Locations of all the meeting places, every Death Eater and apprentice that I know of. And what I know of his plans. But I need Draco. He's the only reason I have anymore."

I said, "All our plans for getting Draco out assumed he'd be with you. Unless he's turned over a new leaf, you're asking us to take him by force."

"Yes, I am. For his own good."

I said, "We can't leave you here by yourself, unprotected." And also because I still wasn't sure this wasn't a ruse.

"Of course not."

Sirius glared at her. "You are the most difficult woman I have ever met."

"I never cared for you either, mongrel. Now can you do something useful or not?"

Sirius looked at me, "Arthur, I'm going to have to get out my mirror."

"Absolutely not! You can't involve the children!"

"They're already involved. You get to the ministry and sound the alarm. I'll get Harry ready and tell Moony. We can't get on the train, it's too well protected. Not sure how Voldemort is but we'll worry about that later."

He looked at Narcissa. "I'm going to have to suspend the wards, not sure who is going to end up here, so be ready. But make sure you know what side to curse if we have company."

Sirius found his mirror. He told it, "Harry Potter!"

I needed to hurry. I disapparated to the ministry and ran to Kingsley's office. "The train's about to be attacked!"

He hit a button that sounded an alarm for a general emergency. "I just received a report from the engineer that they were stopped. Bridge out. Must have been a giant."

Kingsley pointed to a map. "Here's where they are. I need to make sure help is organized or they will pick us off one by one. I told Hogwarts and McGonagall responded. But not much she could do from there. Dumbledore hasn't answered yet."

I looked at the map. "Five minutes and we have to go with whomever we have. I'm going to try to reach friends and family that can help."

 ***Ginny***

I was half-asleep on the train. The rocking back and forth often did that, especially after being up past curfew going on a knickers search with Luna.

She had had one more place she had thought of, but insisted I get back to the tower because of the hour. Dobby promised to keep an eye on her. The only thing keeping me awake was Harry twirling a few strands of my hair that tickled my right ear, but I didn't mind. Suddenly though, he sat up. "Hold up."

I was jolted from my happy place and wondering if Harry was getting embarrassed by anything. Suddenly though, he pulled out his two-way mirror. "Sirius?" he said.

"Hey, pup. Put up some silencing wards?"

He flicked his wand and turned back his attention. We all gathered around the mirror. "Done. What's going on?"

"The train is about to be attacked. We'll try to get help, but you may not have it for a few minutes. Try to get everyone out. Hopefully you can find some sixth and seventh years who can sidealong apparate. But use the bracelets to get to your house if you have to."

Hermione said, "I think I can duplicate portkeys. I've been practicing and it's easier than making from scratch."

"Good. Do you still have the jewel for the Burrow?"

"Yes."

"I don't want anyone getting hurt unnecessarily, but if you have the opportunity, plant one on Draco and activate it."

"You want us to kidnap him?"

Ron said, "Brilliant."

Sirius ignored him. "It's not really kidnapping if his mother is asking us."

Hermione said, "I'll set it up."

"I don't have any more advice. Watch out for each other." With that, the mirror went dark.

Harry said, "I can't just sneak off. They're going to be after me and I don't want anyone hurt on my account."

"You have your cloak, luv?" I asked.

He dug it out of his pocket and handed it to me. I pushed his hand away but he insisted. "Gin, Tom will either want me alive if he knows about my scar and otherwise he'll want to do it himself. They won't have any such reservations about you."

"Then I'm going after Malfoy." My eyes dared anyone to argue. "Sirius wouldn't have asked if it wasn't important."

I handed Hermione a hair ribbon that had been living in my pocket for a few months. "Will this work?"

"It should." She turned towards the window to concentrate.

Ron said, "Since we're prefects, Mione and I can go check on the younger years and get them rounded up. Any fourth years and above, should be allowed to fight if they want."

Harry was reluctant but finally agreed. Hermione turned around and put the ribbon in my pocket. "I copied the jewel. It'll activate five seconds after you touch it."

"Ok."

"Let's go, Ronald." They stood up and she gave him a quick peck.

After they left, Harry grabbed hold of me. "It'll be ok. You've taught all of us well," I said. We fell into the seat as the train came to a screeching halt. It had begun. "I love you."

"I love you too." I pressed my lips tightly on his and then pulled his cloak close around me to find the Slytherins.

The aisle was full of students, rushing towards the back exit. I started hearing cries and screams and explosions. It's rough going, moving against a crowd when you're small and invisible. I finally made it to where I thought Draco would be. That berth and all the ones next were all empty.

They were already outside, sitting idly while everyone else was running or fighting. Probably the first ones out of the train, of course. Cursing silently, I made my way to the exit.

We were surrounded by trees but the rocky ground near the cliff had made a natural clearing. The river was about fifteen feet below the tracks. With the bright sun and a slight breeze, it would have been a pleasant spot for an outing in other circumstances.

I saw Lavender, Parvati, and her sister lying still on the ground. Thankfully, they seemed merely stunned. The fighting seemed to have stopped, confusingly.

I heard the voice of Bella calling out in sickingly babyish tone. "Hawwwwy… come out and play…. or I cheat with someone else."

I heard his voice stand out, trying to be strong. "I'm right here."

She and two other Death Eaters answered with different curses. Harry put up a shield and rolled to his left to as the first two were block but took the shield down. The others missed. He got up and started firing back.

I stowed the cloak and joined in with some of my infamous bat bogeys. A few stunners flew by my left shoulder. Ron, Hermione, Luna, and a few others from the Defense Club were helping too.

We were barely keeping up, having to stay on defense. It would be only a matter of time. But Harry wouldn't leave with hurt classmates on the ground.

I heard the crack of an apparition and saw a blur of pink hair as Dora Lupin attacked her aunt in earnest. With her distracted, we were able to take down some of the less skilled of Tom's cronies.

Dora called out, "More help is coming. Remus and some of the Weasleys are holding back a group led by Greyback behind that ridge"

If a group of untransformed werewolves got to the student body…. I let myself be distracted for a second and took a bludgeoning curse to the shoulder. My shield stopped most of it but enough leaked through that my right shoulder was now aching.

"Mudblood!" Bellatrix had decided she was done with the easy stuff and the green light of the killing curse sailed towards Hermione. Dora summoned a black dirt wall that protected my friend, but it cost the auror precious seconds. She was disarmed and then tied up in a moment.

"She's mine!" Bellatrix yelled. "There are consequences to mingling the noble blood of Black with a beast. Severe punishments."

She slowly walked towards her while the rest of the battle almost down to a draw. I saw Harry and he knew what was coming. Dora would probably lose the baby if held under the cruciatus for any length of time. I had memories of Tom using that knowledge on young couples who resisted serving him.

I tried hexing her but it was blocked by a wizard I didn't know. She raised her wand and yelled out "Crucio!"

At the same time, I heard the crack of someone apparating. Harry was standing before Dora and took the curse. He fell to the ground, writhing.

This pleased the psychotic murderess to no end. "Oh… this is much better. I'll get to the blood traitor later. You've known pain before Harry. Let's see how much you can take… the Dark Lord needs you alive. He didn't say unspoilt."

I was fighting off an adult Death Eater myself, keeping her from taking Dora. It was all I could do but Harry was on the ground screaming.

It became softer and then stopped. I knew I was losing him. Where was Dumbledore?

And then a green bow wave burst out from him. It was so bright my eyes were dazzled and I barely registered that I had been knocked down, along with everyone else.

Harry stood and stumbled after all that pain. But he was up. Bellatrix fired a cutting curse at him that he wordlessly flicked away. Two more flew at him so quickly they almost appeared as one.

But Harry was quicker and he was untouched.

My opponent finally went down with some help from Ron. The rest of the opposition was down as Dad and the aurors finally arrived.

I turned to help out my boyfriend, but he didn't need it as he started attacking. He was so silent and quick it was awesome yet scary. Like a cobra.

Bellatrix was barely keeping up. Her time to deflect between attacks was shrinking so she cast a shield.

Harry sent a blasting curse that got through and blew apart the shield. Half a second later, she was disarmed and knocked to the ground, stunned.

I was so shocked that I almost forgot my personal mission. I put on the cloak to make it through the crowd and made my way towards Draco. Unfortunately, he had quickly decided to scarper off after seeing his aunt have her arse handed to her. I ran after him.

We were both well clear of the group but Draco disappeared after cresting a hill. I finally saw him again but he was getting away. I took the cloak back off and fired a tripping jinx at him. I couldn't aim well with the cloak on and there no way was I catching up otherwise with my short legs. We were in the open, but with the amount of magic going on around me, I didn't think I would get caught by the Trace.

He went down on his face and I would just worry about Ministry letters later. I sent a stunner before he could react and then grabbed the hair ribbon from my childhood home. Then I forced myself to grab Draco's left hand and put the portkey on his palm before squeezing his hands around it. I barely let go before he disappeared.

There was suddenly a new sound of chaos back towards the main group. I started running back until I fell to the ground after being hit with a curse. My right leg burst in pain. I looked at it and I had a nasty cut down the side, right in the meat of my calf.

I had ran right into Crabbe and Goyle and made myself an easy enough target for even them to hit.

Crabbe said, "Hey, I got Potter's bitch! Where's Draco?"

Goyle was unable to respond as my stunner met its mark. Crabbe got an extended session of bat bogeys instead.

Not seeing anyone else, I took a deep breath and produced a patronus. I told my doe, "Tell Harry mission accomplished. I'm heading home." He didn't need to worry about my leg.

I grinned as Crabbe was still trying to work the countercurse while I portkeyed to Potter Manor.

 ***Arthur***

Ginny's patronus had just vanished and I felt better that she was accounted for. Ron and Hermione had gotten all the younger students out moments before. Then You-Know-Who arrived.

He looked around at his mostly fallen followers. His ghostly white head cocked to one side and they all disappeared. "Harry Potter… you have interfered for the last time!"

He fired a barrage of spells at him. Kingsley and I fired back to help, but our spells and Harry's were blocked. Harry had to dodge multiple curses, but now he was off balance. He yelled out "Expelliamus!" at the same time one more red curse came at him.

The spells collided and the wands somehow linked. The golden beam was so bright it hurt to stare but I couldn't help myself. I thought I heard phoenix song and then an image of a young witch appeared. Followed by more folk, in both wizard and muggle garments.

Harry seemed to be talking to them while he desperately tried to keep control of his wand. Finally, a young woman and a man that matched Harry's features appeared.

We used the distraction to get the last students and injured adults out but I wasn't going without Harry. Suddenly, he broke the connection and vanished. I quickly followed, apparating back home.

The disorientation lasted only a second and I quickly confirmed I was at the front gate of Potter Manor. Harry was next to me. He took a step, stumbled and almost fell. I grabbed onto his arm while saying, "I have you, son," and he leaned against me.

Molly opened the front door when she saw us and I helped Harry slowly walk inside. Ginny was on the couch with a leg propped up. Tonks was casting some basic charms to check for injuries.

"Just a cut on the leg, Dad," she said before looking over to her boyfriend. "Here, I'll make room." She moved to one side, wincing a bit when her leg shifted. Harry collapsed next to her and she held him tightly. No words were needed.

Tonks finished with Ginny's leg and then handed him a vial. "Cruciatus cure," she said.

Harry nodded and downed it, doing his best to not let it hit his tongue.

Remus hesitant approached. "Harry… thank you. For protecting my wife and child. I don't know what I would have done to myself…"

"That's not happening," he said with conviction.

I had to ask. "When did you learn to apparate?"

"I didn't. The first time, I just knew that I needed to help Dora. After that, I remembered the feeling and knew I needed to leave. Somehow it worked."

Hermione and Ron flooed in soon afters. She said, "Most everyone is at King's Cross. We didn't know where else to go. Kingsley and some aurors were there and they said they would take over until all the parents arrived." After this disaster, I imagined some of those children would not be returning.

Molly was fixing everyone some biscuits and tea to take the edge off the morning's events. I was just about to go after Sirius, when he finally appeared.

Sirius collapsed into a chair, world-weary. "Draco is not a very happy Slytherin at the moment. I think after seeing what Harry did to his aunt, he's going to wise up and not holler too much about sitting out the war in Egypt. If not, he's Narcissa's problem and she's welcome to it."

Hermione stood at the doorway to the kitchen, trying to not be caught staring at Harry and alternating with shifting from one side to another. Molly noticed and said, "You poor dear, your parents are probably wondering where you are."

She nodded. "But I feel like I should be here too."

I suggested, "We will be alright for now. Ron, how about you go along, make sure everything is fine." If he was dating her, it was about time he met her parents anyway. "You're welcome back for supper, or anytime."

Molly took Ron aside, probably to warn Ron about his manners like a mum normally would. He put on a nervous smile. Sirius volunteered to sidealong them both.

After they stepped out, Harry took a bite of a biscuit and then said, "I'm so tired. I'm going to lie down."

Ginny looked half at him and half at Harry. "I'm ok but I should keep off the leg for a bit so I'll go keep you company."

Molly took a few seconds and said, "Let me know if there's any problems."

"Yes, Mum."

Sirius was back in a few minutes. "I made sure they arrived safely and strengthened the wards around the house. I said someone would get them after teatime."

A few hours later, I found Harry and Ginny curled up together and asleep in his room. I heard a commotion from the front room and I rushed in, along with Remus and Dora. I saw a patronus tabby cat that began to speak. "Mrs. Lupin, I need you at Hogwarts immediately."

The cat turned into vapour and Dora looked around. "Well, then. I best be off."

Remus asked, "We could use backup."

Sirius said, "I think I should stay here. We don't know what happened with Harry yet and I don't want to take any chances. Arthur, can you go with them?"

"Sure, that makes sense."

The three of us soon were back at the gates of Hogwarts. I remembered how foreboding it was all was the first time I saw many years ago. Before the war had started. There were rumours and disappearances, but most of that was hidden from little children.

I sighed. I knew my daughter's memories of here had been immediately tainted. Even if we won and survived, her innocence had already been sacrificed and there was no getting it back.

Minerva met us at the main door, looking defeated. Remus broke the silence. "Do we have any numbers from the train?" he asked grimly while we were walking on the corridors.

"Four children. I should be grateful that it wasn't more, and I imagine your family had much to do with that. But four children who never came home from school."

We were almost at Dumbledore's office. "I've received twice that number of howlers in the last hour. Addressed to the Headmaster."

The office door opened without her reciting a password. I thought I knew what was coming but I never would have imagined.

Dumbledore was in his chair dead, his left hand almost burned to a crisp. Snape was on the floor face down and facing away.

To her credit, Dora's training kicked in and she started casting preservation and diagnostic spells.

Minerva said, "Dumbledore was ecstatic yesterday evening, he said he found someone important but wouldn't go into details. He was missed at breakfast but I assumed whatever he was doing ran long. With the attack, I was too distracted to check on him. I don't know who I can trust at the ministry so I called on you."

Dora finished looking at Snape and hesitantly approached Dumbledore. Finally, she turned around. "I don't see any damage to Snape, only a significant magical signature. Only a few possible causes, the most common is the killing curse."

"But who would have cast that?" I asked.

"There's a few portions that'd do the same as well."

Minerva disagreed. "And Severus would have been the only one to brew them. Slughorn also, but that doesn't mean seem likely."

Remus said, "I believe breaking an unbreakable vow would have the same result. A serious break results in an instant magical death."

Was that how he had convinced Dumbledore to trust him? "What about the Headmaster?" I asked.

Dora said, "Curse damage. Started at the hand and… I think I found it." She wrapped her hand in cloth and reached inside a pocket. She pulled out a fancy yet gaudy ring with a jeweled 'S' and her hair turned gray like the sea in a storm. "He was able to pull it off, but it was too late. There is something very…wrong with this. I can't tell what though."

I looked at her and then Remus. "Is that…"

"I think so," he said. "We will need to have this looked at." His wife nodded and put it away after placing it under a containment charm.

She said, "What about the bodies?"

Minerva said, "Severus had no family. We may never know what happened here and given the work he was supposedly doing, perhaps it is best that he is thought to have disappeared. I can transfigure the body into something small that can be buried easily. Albus will have to have a grand funeral, but we can hide the spell damage. I assume you do not wish others to know about that he found."

Definitely. We still had one left, plus the one in Harry. I said, "That would be best given the circumstances."

Dora said, "I'll head to the Auror's office. I'll give you half an hour to get rid of Snape."

"That should be sufficient."

As the Lupins started to leave, I said, "I'll go find Hagrid and let him know. He'll be crushed."

"Yes, he always had a special relationship… this school won't be the same without him."

"I know you will manage. It is a big hole to fill though."

She nodded as Snape's body shrunk and transformed into a single bone. Dumbledore's arm was changed into something that appeared normal at first glance. "I'll make sure he is in a long robe. This should last for a few days. He was an old man, they shouldn't look too hard."

I conjured a bag to put the bone in. "I'll bury this on the way to Hagrid's hut." Then I noticed something that had fallen out of Dumbledore's robe. "And here's his wand, I'm sure he'd want to be buried with it."

 ***Ginny***

I was jostled awake by Harry. I opened my bleary eyes, sat up, and saw a mess of brown hair at the far side of the room. "Hermione?"

"Sirius retrieved Ron and I a bit early. They have something they want to discuss."

"All right."

"You're such a heavy sleeper," Harry said as we left the room.

"It's your fault, I'm too comfortable with you with me. I wish we could…"

Dad's face was sad. Mum was crying. With them were Bill, Fleur, Ron, and Sirius.

"What happened?" Harry asked.

Dad said, "Dumbledore is dead."

I found myself asking, "How?"

"He found this." Dad took something out of his pocket and let a ring slowly roll onto the table. He started talking about Snape dying as well but I couldn't focus. All I heard was the distant screams of a young man.

"It's an anchor," I said. "It's fighting back more than the others. Probably one of the first."

Sirius said, "That's what we thought… Harry you're not reacting."

Bill cast a spell and the horcrux quieted to a dull roar in the back of my head. "Thanks," I said. "Luv, are you ok?"

Harry looked. "I'm not getting anything. And now that you mention it… not really anything this afternoon either."

Ron said, "You would think he would be having a lot of emotions right now. The train attack was not what he hoped. And I bet he knows about Dumbledore, all the leaks in the ministry."

Bill looked at our youngest brother, surprised.

"What? I know things."

Sirius looked at him. "Harry, are you sure… Voldemort is going to be furious right now and probably taking it out on his followers. Are you not feeling anything from that?"

He shook his head. "No, nothing. In fact… I've always felt a pressure, especially once he came back. I sort of got used to it. But now that you mention it… it's gone."

Remus looked at Harry and then Sirius, and then back. "I think the horcrux is gone. That's what that blast was."

I couldn't help but tremble. "Gone… you mean…" Despite all my pretenses, I fell into Harry's arms and did her best to hide my crying.

Harry stroked her hair, "Gin… it's ok. You told me that we'd get it out. I'm not going anywhere."

Bill walked up to us. "I'm going to do a scan if that's ok. I've had enough experience with the others now…" Harry nodded. Bill concentrated and time stopped for minutes. He stowed his wand and squeezed Harry's shoulder. Bill quietly said, "I think you're clean."

I looked up and nodded, drying a few tears. Harry said, "I'd like to know how though."

Hermione sat up and hesitantly said, "I think I may… I think the prophecy Ginny heard required multiple fulfillments. Harry had experienced all three Unforgivables from You-Know-Who, which was what Dumbledore thought needed to happen. The killing curse when he was a baby and the other two at the tournament. That wasn't enough to free him.

"Even as Harry has experienced such intense three-fold hate… so had You-Know-Who. He had never experienced real love. And he's been consumed by fear ever since."

Hermione paused. Remus asked, "So what was it?"

She looked hesitant. "Mind you, I'm just guessing and this seems more something that Luna would come up with, but Vol... Voldemort has done such violence, that the cosmos, magic itself needs to be balanced.

"Harry was to be the counterweight… after being shown the same level of hatred, could someone return it with love instead? Or would there just be more hatred and anger?"

He had his moments with his temper. But he was nothing like Tom! After all that abuse and pain he was still… good.

Hermione finished. "To complete the prophecy, Harry needed to fully experience love. Both giving and receiving in word and deed from the same blood, in the three classical expressions of love."

Ron looked at her. "You're not just figuring this out now."

"I've been researching. A lot. One, the love of friendship. Ronald, you took a curse for him at the end of the tournament. Harry risked himself the same night to stop you from being tortured."

"Second, erotic love." She blushed for a second but said, "Harry and Ginny have declared and expressed their love in an intimate enough manner… that was never a worry."

I groaned mentally. I wished she would have said that differently.

"Finally, unconditional love. Like that of a parent for a child. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley fulfilled half of it after growing up with the Dursleys. Harry fulfilled the other half by honoring the unbreakable vow he made to protect Baby Lupin."

Harry said, "But you said that it all had to be of one blood. The Lupins aren't related to Ron and Gin."

Hermione said, Remus and Bill share the essence of the same werewolf. It seemed like a bit of a loophole, but it was better than the other option. The completed love was enough to drive out that piece of evil."

Harry was in a bit of a shock. I asked, "Luv, are you ok?"

He looked into the distance and said, "I can live… Gin... I can live."

None of us held back any tears.

Remus and Dora arrived a few minutes before supper, bringing with them the sword of Gryffindor. She said, "The ministry is a mess. Everyone thinks Dumbledore was the only one who could face You-Know-Who."

Sirius said, "We dealt them a massive blow as well. I have the names and homes of some of the minor players. We go after them, make them question their devotion. A lot of their galleons came from the Lestranges and Malfoys. He won't be able to buy loyalty much longer.

Harry said, "I'm not ready to go after Tom though. And there's two of those… things left!"

Sirius said, "Well, first let's make it one!" He took the sword and brought it hate down on the cursed ring. I thought it would have shattered, but instead it came loose from its setting and changed color from a dark green to light pink.

Bill waved his wand over it. "That did it. There is something strange about the stone. I'd like to look into it…"

Sirius said, "As long as you are safe and no one knows about it." Then he turned to Harry. "And you may not be ready but you are close. You were beating Bellatrix! And that after you got through whatever happened."

Dora said, "Harry, you could probably best any of us here. You'll get there."

We were all quiet for a moment until Harry quietly said, "I saw my mum and dad. When I was fighting Tom. Our wands connected and I heard a song and then ghosts or shadows of people he killed… it sounds crazy."

Dad said, "I saw it too, son. It sounded like phoenix song."

"Our wands… they are both from the same phoenix…"

Remus nodded. "Wands use the magic of the animal that produced their core to focus your power. Two cores from the same creature, it would be again their nature to fight. You causes his wand to show the victims of the spells it had cast. I don't know much about the theory. Ollivander would know more."

"Well, whatever the reason, I'm glad it worked," Harry said.

Over the rest of the evening, I looked at him and I finally saw something just slightly different in his eyes. A weight that wasn't there. Not the thing anyone else would notice, but I had stared into those emerald eyes until I saw my future in them. And then I knew. But I wanted to be sure.

I found Harry brushing his teeth and pulled him into the nearer closet. He grinned and said, "I hardly think I should have to sneak into closets in my own house Miss Weasley."

I growled. "I finally have you all to myself. Shut up and kiss me."

He wrapped his arms around the small of my back and didn't need any further encouragement. I reached up and ran my fingers through his hair, pressing against him.

I could almost feel the power coming off him. I opened my mouth wider and he tasted like lightning. Harry must have realized it and was able to control it before I was burned up.

We stopped and after getting enough blood to his brain, he said, "Brilliant…"

I smiled and opened the door. All the glass in the bath had shattered from our excitement. "I'll take the seven years of bad luck."

I looked at him in confusion.

"It's a muggle thing." He waved a hand and wordlessly repaired it without thinking. "I feel… odd. Still getting used to it."

Hermione and Ron we're hurrying down the hall. "We heard breaking glass," he said.

"Sorry mate that was me," Harry said. "And maybe a bit of your sister."

"Don't want to hear it."

Hermione said, "Imagine you had to learn to walk with weights on your ankles. And then you had them taken off."

Ron exclaimed, "All this time you had to spend energy fighting it!" I knew how exhausting my possession had been. Harry's wasn't the same, but to have that almost his entire life...

Hermione agreed. "And now you don't. The sudden burst may not completely last but once it evens out, you are going to be stronger than you were."

She was being too fast figuring all this out, even for her. I stared at her icily and let myself boil over. "You… knew. You bloody knew about all of it and let me worry myself to death! You watched me cry and…"

"I'm sorry, Ginny. I had to," Hermione explained. "If you knew… if you had been trying to get the horcrux out, it wouldn't have been out of selfless love and may not have worked. That's why I warned you to not think on it too much. Manipulating prophecies is dangerous. I gave it a gentle nudge without breaking the rules."

I tried seeing the sense of that but Harry had already forgiven her. He walked up and hugged Hermione. "Thank you."

She smiled. "I couldn't let you and Ginny down."

"You saved me."

"Now you can save everyone else."


	21. Year 6, Part 2

***Ginny***

Everyone was quiet at breakfast the next day. Dobby and Kreacher had finally started cooperating after several interventions by Harry over the last few months and Kreacher was actually quite good at cooking when Mum let him. Dobby was upstairs unpacking our school trunks.

Dad had his work robe on and called for our attention. "Sirius, your mother, and I talked yesterday and we don't think you should leave the house without significant protection and planning. The enemy is becoming bolder and none of us are ready yet."

I was going to say something about not being a part of the "we" making that decision, but I saw Dad's eyes and knew he wasn't happy about having to say that. I nodded. Ron started to get up but then he slumped, disappointed. Harry didn't have any reaction and was withdrawn for most of the morning.

Hermione came over around lunch, which Harry skipped. That was enough of that, so the three of us invaded the master bedroom. I said, "Luv, please talk to us." We all got on the bed and I held onto his arms and waited.

After a minute, Harry brokenly said, "I feel bad. Like I should be more sad than I am. He… I felt like he gave me everything good in my life. But I've been so mad at him. All the mistakes he made. Sirius. Hagrid. Me…"

Hermione said, "Harry, he did what he thought best for all of us. He cared about you, but he wasn't perfect. Everyone was relying on him."

And who were they going to look to now? Harry nodded. "I don't want that sort of power. If I make it… I'm never going to be left alone."

I squeezed him. "Luv, he was a great wizard. So are you. It's why I crushed on the Boy Who Lived," I admitted. "But more than that, you are a good man. That's why I love you. We will be ok."

After a few more minutes, I finally got a smile out of him. I saw Hermione give Ron a sideways glance which he didn't catch. My brother did say, "Harry, we haven't had a chess match for awhile, being busy with training and OWLs."

He shrugged. "Sure, mate. I'm sure getting thrashed will cheer me up," he said a little sarcastically. But he stood up to dig out the board and pieces anyway.

Harry played a more defensive game than usual. He was out of practice and when he had gone on the attack in the past, it was usually premature and the game was quickly over. Playing this way he would at least prolong his agony.

It actually was fairly even for several minutes. Then Harry sacrificed his Queen without any apparent reason. Ron went on the offensive with a knight but then two moves later, his Queen was blocked. Not captured, but useless. He stayed committed to the attack anyway, moving up a rook.

Harry had the slightest grin on his face. I was the only one staring at him enough to notice it. Two moves later, he was down a bishop but he had a pawn in the second to the front rank. Ron's defenses were in the wrong spot and his king was backed into a corner.

The pawn moved to the last rank and was promoted to a queen. Ron's king had no retreat and no help. "Checkmate."

To his credit, Ron smiled. "I can't believe I left that open. I'll get you next time."

"Probably."

At supper the following day, Dad had some news. It wasn't happy news, but it was at least able to take our mind off the problem from earlier on the day. Harry was still stubbornly working on the wall we had all spent the last three years taking down.

Dad said, "Dumbledore's funeral is going to be in a week. He's going to be buried on the school grounds."

Harry looked up. "I'll need to get some appropriate robes. Unless the school ones will do."

Dad headed him off. "Harry, I don't want you to go. None of you kids."

"Mr. Weasley, I ought to be there. Everyone will be expecting me…"

"Harry, that's my point. We don't know if the protections will hold that far away from the castle. And all the school governors had to be invited. Including Lucius Malfoy."

"So we might as well be locked up while the bastard acts like nothing happened?"

"You don't need to go looking for trouble. It's not…"

Dad never finished his sentence as Harry stormed off. "Ginny, what's going on?"

I sighed and nodded at Hermione, who ran off to our room to retrieve the stack of burnt letters. "You set it so all of the mail is prescreened by the mailroom. Mum put Percy on the list of approved senders?"

"Yes… she's hoping he comes to his senses."

"Hasn't happened yet," Ron muttered.

Hermione came back with several letters that Harry had lit before she extinguished the fire, hoping to save as evidence. "Percy made sure Harry received these, Mr. Weasley."

Dad took the letters and tried reading through the char. I said, "They blame Harry for not ending the war. One even suggested that if he gave himself up, Tom would leave the rest of us alone. He tries to not let it get to him, but it does."

Dad nodded. "Sirius is out doing surveillance all night. I'll go talk to him."

I hugged him tightly. "Please help him, Daddy."

 ***Arthur***

I paused in the hallway, thinking about my estranged son. I had hoped… I wasn't sure what I hoped for anymore. That he would at least stop trying to make us choose between him and Harry. Even if I hadn't taken legal steps years ago, it wasn't right how he has been treated. By any adult in his life. Doing what was right was more important than blood. If not, then I was on the wrong side of the war.

I knocked on Harry's door and he said I could come in. I entered the spacious master bedroom and found him sitting on the bed, staring out into the air.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Weasley. I shouldn't have been so rude."

"Thank you, Harry." I sat next to him and shared the silence. After a few moments, I said, "You know none of this is your fault."

"I try to believe that. I just… I feel like I'm always surrounded by death."

I sighed and patted his shoulder. He had finally stopped flinching when he unexpectedly was touched. "I don't know what you believe personally, if this was destined by someone or this is all just really bad luck, but we were all blessed that this all fell to a young man like you… and if it's luck, maybe it will all balance out in the end."

I got a small head nod from him. "You are never going to have to be alone. If I had a time-turner… just keep your focus on what matters and pay those others no mind. It's wrong for them to think of you as their saviour. It's too much for anyone to handle. Find one thing to fight for, just make sure it's the right thing."

Dumbledore's funeral was depressing, the bright sunny weather notwithstanding. Not just in the way that one would expect a funeral. The minister sent Kingsley and I as her representatives.

But it was filled with speeches from rich, important purebloods going on and on about his power and greatness when they had opposed everything he had tried to do when alive. Sirius had argued with Minister Bones, trying to get her to start mandatory checks for the Dark Mark at any official function, but there were too many Wizengamot members who were trying to remain neutral.

The Prophet had definitely decided to profit from Dumbledore's passing. The next day's issue was filled with pictures and accounts of the funeral. Then two weeks later, a special edition was printed that claimed to have an exclusive about a past no one knew about.

Hermione was practically living with us and she tore through the accounts one evening in the kitchen. Finally, she folded it up neatly but with frustration, and placed it on the table.

"What do you think?" I asked. I had skimmed through it earlier in the day. She had read it multiple times, looking for any subtle clues.

"I don't want… I hope it's not true, Mr. Weasley. He was the leader of the light. To think he actually was friends or more with Grindelwald."

Ginny said, "But you don't think it's total bollocks."

"No, I don't. It fits together too well. It explains why he took so long to confront him. And why he's never tried to fix the Ministry from the inside. And the whole greater good bit… it was at Hogwarts if you looked close enough."

She nodded. "It feels true. Not sure it changes anything, except discouraging us. I guess we press on."

The next week brought bad and worse news. The Prophet's headline was still speculating on Dumbledore's death but it started to sound a lot like finding excuses for giving in. Once the reporter started minimizing the contributions that Muggleborns made to our society, I could tell where it was going and flipped the page.

"It says Ollivander is missing," I announced.

Ron dropped his spoon. "What happened?"

"Just says his shop has been closed for a week. Someone decided to look into it and he hasn't been seen for ten days. This isn't a busy time for selling wands, so maybe he went on holiday without notice But not for this long."

Molly overheard us and started reading over my shoulders. "The poor old man… I remember getting my wand from him before my first year…"

Harry asked, "What will incoming students do?"

"There's other wandmakers, just not as good as him. And whatever they wanted with him... I'm sure not good. But don't you worry about it." I knew he was going to anyway.

I came home right before supper the next day, but wouldn't be staying. Ron asked, "Going on another raid?"

I was going to deny it at first but nodded. "Yes, Sirius and I. Kingsley and Johnson will be watching the perimeter. No you still can't go."

Ginny said, "You could use the help. Just an extra set of eyes." Harry agreed. I knew that it was grating not being able to help.

I insisted, "You'll have your chance. But even if your mother wouldn't skin me alive if I brought you, you're all underaged. There won't be wards to protect you and the self-defense excuse won't pass when you're attacking Death Eaters. Lucius would get you expelled and probably arrested for good measure."

Hermione only had a couple months to seventeen, but I doubted she'd be allowed to help until she was done with school. And though she definitely could fight but didn't seem as eager.

I had another sort of fight when I got back with a crushed arm. I was in for a painful night of healing.

"Arthur, no more! Johnson isn't coming home tonight. I don't want you to be next."

"It was a lucky hit."

"And your luck's not lasting forever either. At least be more careful. Sirius charging in there, going off half-cocked…"

"It's worked so far. I don't think I'm going to talk him out of it."

"You can try."

Sirius had seemed understanding but disappointed when I made an excuse for not helping during the next raid. He was going to go on without me, which I had fully expected.

Meanwhile, Molly was in full panic mode regarding the wedding, which we would be hosting in a fortnight at a rented muggle hall. She had Fleur, Hermione, and Ginny working details for the reception until after eleven. My daughter probably would sooner elope before signing up for all the drama.

I tried soothing her as she slid next to me. "Dear, it will all work out."

She tried nodding. "Fleur is just so… and we're… I want everything to go right."

I was about to answer when the portkey ward sounded. It wasn't anyone trying to get on that wasn't allowed, but way past the time when we expected activity.

Before I was fully woken up, I was in the living room in my dressing gown a moment after Harry. Sirius was lying on the floor, collapsed and bloody.

I knelt beside him as I heard a moan from the old dog. Harry said shakily, "Sirius…"

He turned to the side and coughed, grimacing. I waved my wand over him. "A couple broken ribs. Some internal bleeding."

By now, the rest of the household was in the room. Molly said, "I'll get the potions."

I debated on levitating him to a couch, but Sirius somehow forced his way into a sitting position. "Thanks, Molly," he said as he downed the elixirs. His eyes fluttered for a minute but then he opened them and seemed more lucid.

"All right, back to bed all." Harry helped him to his feet. "Show's over." No one moved, hardly believing him. "I'll be fine after a night's rest. I can't say the same about Rabastan though."

I had to leave for work before Sirius was up the next day and so I didn't get to speak with him privately until after dinner. But I did manage to get him alone.

"Sirius, I know it was probably worth it, but…"

"Damn right it was, Arthur. You know what type of person he was. How many lives he's taken and ruined."

I took a breath. "You're starting to scare me. First Peter, then all the rest."

"This way, I know they aren't going to escape again. You know what the Auror Corps are down to… I was camped outside a known hangout and saw him going out by himself. I wasn't going to let go of the chance just because I didn't have backup."

"A quarter inch and it'd have gone the other way."

"I know. I don't care. I want to end this for Harry and Ginny."

I sighed. "They want you to see the end of this too. Please just… be more careful. Moody got jumped this morning. Didn't make it. None of us are invincible."

"I'm sorry about Moody, good man and a great fighter, but I'm not going to stop, Arthur. Every last one that I kill is one less after the kids. I'll try to watch my back more but I can't say anything else."

"Well, I guess that'll have to do then. At least take the night off." He agreed. But he was gone the next morning and I didn't see him again until the wedding two weeks later.

It was a good thing the wedding was set for mid-afternoon, I mused while having a cuppa before lunch. Bill, Charlie, and the twins hadn't returned from their stag night, hopefully having spent the night at the twins' or Bill's flat. Ron and Harry were both underaged so we used that as the excuse for them not going. If we had mentioned security, Molly and I would have had a mutiny to deal with.

Charlie's lanky dragon patronus popped up, swirled around for a bit, and then, "We're heading over to the hall, see you soon."

Right.

I started to head up the stairs to check on the boys, but they met me halfway down. Harry was wearing a dark dress robe with emerald overtones. Thankfully I had been able to save up enough to get Ron something a bit more respectable. Being the groom's side was a lot less costly, which was a bonus in having six boys. And I knew my daughter would never have to want for anything ever again. Not that I suspected she'd want something anywhere near as extravagant as the Delacours had planned.

It had been a headache, balancing the wedding everyone wanted with keeping everyone safe. The Delacours had paid for everything with an alias that Sirius had set up. Him, Bill, and I had set up wards the previous evening before things got too hectic and Fleur and her mother had put in some of their own charms before retiring to the hotel. With any luck, only the portkeys that Bill made would get one into the ceremony.

"Did Hermione make it in?" I asked. Molly was supervising Dobby and a few other house elves with the luncheon and evening meal preparation. A compromise since most everything else was store-bought and it let her feel needed and kept busy.

Harry said, "Yes, she flooed this morning and is up in Gin's room getting ready."

"Good. Hopefully they'll be ready soon and we can head over, I'm sure the women will have plenty of work for us to do when we get there." I paused and then said, "I'm not going to tell you not to bring your wands, but remember you are both not supposed to be using them. Even if there's an emergency, please let us sort it out."

They both agreed half-heartedly.

"We might as well go down and wait for them to finish up."

We sat at the table in somewhat awkward silence. Ron was tapping his fingers and then said, "I don't remember things taking this long last wedding we were at."

I said, "Well, that was just a second cousin of your mother, so we didn't show until the ceremony started. My job for the day was usually to keep you, Ginny, and the twins from getting dirty, making messes, or into mischief. So if you don't remember being bored, I must have done something right."

Harry added, "I don't think I've been to a wedding before, magical or otherwise."

Ron looked surprised. "I lost count growing up."

Harry shyly said, "Well, you know… not something I would have been brought along to."

I interrupted. "Well, you've probably realized by now, they are just as important to us as muggles, if not more. Especially in the pure-blood circles, they are very formal affairs and just as much about the two families being merged as the two individuals. I had heard that Lucius and Narcissa's wedding had cost thousands of galleons just in solicitors to go over the contract."

"Contract?" Harry asked.

"Well, at the time, it was assumed Sirius and Andromeda would be written out of the will and Narcissa would become the sole heir for the Black estate. There was real estate and many other legal issues, even provisos for tests before and after the ceremony as needed to ensure the legitimacy of any future children."

Both boys made a face with that picture in their head of the Malfoys. "And if that sounds more like a business arrangement, you'd be at least partially right. With power and no real love, that's what it is. All a wedding really is, at its core, is a promise. Everything else is just window dressing." I heard footsteps coming down the staircase. "But if you value your life, never repeat that to your mother or a girl."

Harry smirked and then turned around. Hermione was first, wearing a pretty gown and her hair in an updo that was rather differently than normal. My youngest son looked entranced so I quietly poked him in the back to knock him back to reality. He got up and took her hand. "You look really nice, Hermione."

"Thanks Ron." She smiled and came down the last step.

Then time could have stood still. My daughter was wearing a cream dress that forced me to admit she hadn't been my little girl for a long time. Harry took her hand and he softly kissed her. She looked back at me with a hint of blush.

"Well then, let's go." I held out the empty beef tin that serves as our portkey and tapped it.

The ride was a bit bumpy than usual, probably due to the wards on both sides. But we all arrived in one piece.

There was plenty to do, even with the number of invited guests in the dozens. We also didn't want to be constantly using magic and attract attention. By the time I had a moment to breathe, it was half an hour before the ceremony and the guests had started to arrive.

My stomach dropped as I saw Percy. He neatly stowed his hat and approached me. Molly had insisted on inviting him and Bill hadn't said anything, probably figuring he wouldn't actually come with so much unresolved. But here he was.

"Father," he said.

"Hello." I wasn't sure what to say.

Fred and George always did though. "Are you a friend of the bride?"

"You sure as hell don't deserve to sit on the groom's side."

I looked at them in exasperation.

Percy said stiffly, "I was hoping to not be insulted while attending my brother's wedding."

"Boys, let's not do this here." The twins shuffled off, at least knowing when to stop. "I'm glad you came," I said. He nodded stiffly and found a seat by himself.

It was only ten minutes past the scheduled starting time when the ceremony was underway. Molly was the second-to-last guest to be seated as the bridegroom's mother, escorted by Ron. Harry walked down the aisle with Apolline, Fleur's mother. He was the least affected of the boys by the half-Veela. Madame Delacour took her seat and then soon afterwards, Bill and Charlie, who stood as his best man, appeared at the front. With the shrunken guest list, we didn't have a flower girl or ring-bearer. Gabrielle walked down the aisle as the maid of honor and then Madame Delacor stood up and the rest of us followed.

Fleur's dress was white yet shimmering. She looked almost fairly-like. I had never been one for the mechanics of women's clothing, so I couldn't begin to describe what I saw, but I knew it was intricate and one of a kind.

Charlie actually had to elbow Bill quite hard for him to get his head back on. He took Fleur's hand from her father, shook his hand, and then they settled into their positions.

I looked over at the rest of my family. Molly was in tears for most of the ceremony. The twins were immediately next to her, smiling but not smiling too much, which was good. Ron was a bit awkward while I imagined Hermione was paying rapt attention at the differences between the standard wizarding ceremony and a muggle's. I couldn't see Harry and Ginny too well. Percy was as far away as he could sit on the bench without making anything obvious.

Fred and George had volunteered to provide the music, since we had decided early on to do without a live band. After the couple's first dance, they had the traditional father-daughter and mother-son dance. Molly was so happy. I didn't know how Monsieur Delacour kept it together while dancing with his oldest daughter.

We had a corner with serve-yourself drinks. After a few dances with my wife, I found a quiet corner and sipped some firewhiskey and watched the crowd. Fred and George eventually put the music on automatic and found some French cousins to introduce themselves to.

Most of the younger ones were still out there a long time after my feet had given out. I looked out and saw my daughter cackling with a girlish grin as Harry twirled her in the air. It was nice they could have a few moments of fun.

Sirius and Remus were absent. Bellatrix had made known her plans for her cousin after it slipped she was pregnant by a werewolf and so the Lupins were trying to minimize risk. Dora especially wanted to be out fighting, but after the scare… Meanwhile, Sirius was nearby, prowling around in a less conspicuous form outside, looking for threats.

Percy finally found me again. "Father - I've heard enough talk. You-Know-Who is pushing hard… not acting with patience. You think you're safe at that boy's house but you're not. Maybe Ginvera's reputation isn't my business but I don't want to be attending the funeral of her or anyone else. They just want Harry, who has gone out of his way to be a target. Please stop trying to upset them. It's not worth it."

I had drank enough that my self-control would have failed me if he hadn't left before I could respond. He slipped out the door and out of sight.


End file.
